Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven Revised
by Potterfreak1
Summary: This is the revised version of my story, Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven. As Harry and his friends begin their fifth year at Hogwarts, they discover powers and abilities they never knew they had, along with an ancient prophecy that points to them
1. Prologue: The Prophecy

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Summary: **REVISED: This is the revised version of my story, Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven. AU: I WROTE THIS STORY AS THOUGH OOTP NEVER HAPPENED. As Harry and his friends begin their fifth year at Hogwarts, they discover powers and abilities they never knew they had, along with an ancient prophecy that points to them being the key to defeating Voldemort. HPGW and RWHG pairings. Will be a crossover with Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six.

**Prologue: The Prophecy**

**============**

_The Dark One will arise, killing all who oppose him. The Flower and the Stag will fight him and lose. The son of the Flower and the Stag, known as the Great Phoenix, will survive. Through the Flower's act of love the Phoenix will bring down the Dark One._

_After 11 years the Great Phoenix will discover his heritage. The Dark One will seek the key to immortal life. Once again the Great Phoenix will stop him, for the sacrifice of the Flower still protects him._

_A year later the Great Phoenix will once more confront the Dark One in the serpent's lair. The Dark One's greatest follower will be destroyed and the young maiden rescued._

_At the age of 13 the Great Phoenix will discover the truth about his parents death. It will not be what he expects. The traitor will be discovered and escape. He will return to his master._

_At the age of 14 the Great Phoenix will become a champion and will rise above all but one. The Dark One will steal him away from safety and use his blood to be reborn. The Dark One and the Great Phoenix will duel. The Great Phoenix will be saved by the memories of the past._

_The Dark One will soon grow in power and spread fear across the land. The Order will oppose him, as it has in the past. The forces of light will hold but not be able to vanquish him._

_Only the Great Phoenix will have the power to confront the Dark One. On his 15th birthday he shall begin to receive his great powers. But the Great Phoenix will not be able to prevail alone. To end the darkness he must join forces with the six. Together these Magnificent Seven will be the greatest soldiers of the Light._

_Among their number will be the Owl and the Fox. Their love for each other will only be eclipsed by their loyalty, love and friendship with the Great Phoenix. The Unicorn, whose love with and for the Great Phoenix burns hotter than the Sun, will join them. Also among their number will be the Lions, whose strength and courage are matched only by their mischievousness. The final of their number will be Wolf, whose quiet courage will surprise all._

_In the attack on the hidden alley, the Seven shall first be revealed. They shall be trained by the Order, but shall take a path different than the Order. In three years time the Seven, with the aid of the Order and unexpected allies, shall defeat the Dark One and his armies._

=============================================================================

Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry stared at the parchment in his hand. The time was rapidly approaching when the prophecy would be fulfilled. Indeed, it had already begun.

The previous year Lord Voldemort had managed to resurrect himself and was now gaining strength. The Ministry of Magic still refused to believe what was going on and the efforts of his own Order of the Phoenix were not as successful as he would have liked. He had hoped to be able to spare the young men and woman of whom the prophecy spoke from the great trials ahead, but fate is a stubborn thing.

"I only hope they are ready for the challenge." He whispered to himself


	2. Chapter 1: The Vow

**Chapter 01: The Vow**

**============**

Privet Drive was quiet. Not a single person stirred anywhere...almost. Inside of Number 4 Privet Drive, in a small upstairs bedroom, a young boy shot up out of bed and grasp his lightening shaped scar.

Harry Potter had just had another nightmare. He had been having them ever since the conclusion of the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts nearly a month ago.

_Kill the spare._

These words haunted Harry every night. Shortly after he and Cedric Diggory, the other Hogwarts champion, had taken the Triwizard Cup together they had been transported to a distant graveyard and encountered Wormtail.

Wormtail.

Harry felt a rage of fury rise in him as he thought of his father's former friend, Peter Pettigrew. It was Wormtail who had killed Cedric. It was Wormtail who betrayed his parent's to Lord Voldemort.

Voldemort.

Now Harry's rage threatened to explode. Lord Voldemort had killed his parents and tried to kill him nearly fifteen years ago. His mother's sacrifice had saved him then, causing Voldemort's curse to backfire, sentencing him to 12 years of wandering the earth a mere shell of his former self. Voldemort had tried three times to come back and Harry had defeated him each time. Until now.  


Voldemort had now returned and was slowly rebuilding his power. Harry had already received several letters via owl post from his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermonie Granger. In them they gave him the details of several small incidents of attacks by Voldemort's followers, the Death Eaters. Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, was still being a git and refused to admit that Voldemort had returned. Harry suspected that Dumbledore was working on a way to fight him, but no one seemed to know what he was doing.

Nearly shaking with fury at these thoughts, Harry got out of bed and walked to his dresser mirror. Looking at his reflection he made a decision. Voldemort was back and wouldn't stop until he had killed Harry and conquered the world. Harry vowed that from this moment on, he would do whatever it took to stop him.

"You'll pay Voldemort. For everything. I swear on the graves of you have killed. You will pay."  
__


	3. Chapter 2: Letters and a Surprise

**Chapter 02: Letters and a Surprise  
**

**============**

Nearly three weeks had passed since Harry's vow. Luckily for Harry, Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon seemed to have decided to ignore him this summer, leaving him with plenty of free time. He had begun running every morning and was slowly starting to develop some minor muscle tone. He had also gone to the Muggle library and taken several books out on self-defense. He figured that since he wasn't allowed to practice magic away from Hogwarts he could still learn other useful ways of fighting. He was amazed at how fast he seemed to be picking it up. He also found himself greatly engrossed in reading his schoolbooks, particularly a book on curses and hexes he had borrowed from the Hogwarts library last year to prepare for the Tri-wizard Tournament.

Harry was lying on his bed reading the "Art of War" by Sun Tzu when a gentle tapping on his window broke his concentration. Looking outside, he saw four large owls hovering. He got up and went to the window. When he opened it, the four owls flew inside and landed on his bed. Each had packages and letters attached. He untied the packages and letters, then opened Hedwig's cage to allow them to enter. He carefully examined the first packet, recognizing his friend Ron Weasley's handwriting. He tore open the letter.

_Dear Harry,_

_How's it going mate? I'm glad to here the muggles are leaving you alone for once._

_I'm glad you're taking the time to brush up on your self-defense. What with You-Know-Who out there gaining strength, I think we're all going to need it. I've been working with Hermione and Ginny. Even the twins have gotten into the act. Whatever happens this year, we intend to be ready._

Harry smiled at his friend's mention of Hermione. It had been blatantly obvious since the Yule Ball that Ron fancied her. Shortly after they returned from their 4th year at Hogwarts, Ron finally admitted his feelings towards her. To Ron's surprise (though not to Harry's), she returned the feelings and the two were now dating. She had arrived at the Burrow a week ago and was staying with Ron's family for the rest of the summer while her parents went on a second honeymoon. He had received several letters from them, and their relationship seemed to be going well. He was glad to see his two best friends happy.  


_Speaking of the twins, they've managed to get an anonymous backer for their joke business. Mom isn't very happy about it but for now she's letting them go. They have been hold up in their room since we got back from Hogwarts. The only time anyone sees them now is at dinner time. I have a feeling their working on some new tricks, so be careful with anything they send you.  
_

Again Harry smiled. As of yet, know one had made the connection between the 1000 Galleons he had given George and Fred for their joke shop and his purse from the Triwizard Tournament.

_Mom owled Dumbledore again about letting you come here for your birthday. He didn't give permission but did say you could come a few days before the start of term, so we'll pick you up on August 25 at 5pm, okay?_

_Regards,_

_Ron_

Harry tore into the package that accompanied Ron's letter. Inside he found a small collection of his favorite candy and a book on hexes and curses. Flipping through it, Harry could see that it was slightly more advanced the books he had been studying. He threw it back onto the bed and opened the next letter. He smiled as he recognized Hermione's handwriting.  


_Dear Harry,_

_How are you? I'm certainly glad the muggles are treating you better._

_Did Ron tell you we've (he, I, Ginny and the twins) have been practicing our DADA? We know you don't like to ask others for help, but you're our friend, so we want to be ready to help you face whatever comes this year._

_I can't believe Ron and I are finally together. I've had a crush on him since 2nd year but I never thought he'd feel the same. It's wonderful._

_I'm glad Dumbledore is going to let you come here a few days before school starts. Everyone is anxious to see you._

_Love,_

_Hermonie_

Inside the package that accompanied Hermonie's letter he found another book entitled "Surviving Your O.W.L.s." He smiled. Even with everything that was going on Hermonie was still concerned about their grades. He glanced at the third envelope and immediately recognized the handwriting as Fred and George's.

D_ear Partner,_

_That's right partner. For your kind investment in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, we have decided to make you part owner of the business. You have the option of being an active partner or if you prefer, a silent one. Enclosed you will find a passbook to an account we set up at Gringotts. Your share of our profit will be deposited there on a monthly basis. The first deposit was made yesterday, a total of 200 Galleons._

_We have enclosed a sample kit of available products, as well as some order forms. Even if you do not wish to be an active partner, we ask that you at least put this starter kit to good use this year. Like you said on the train, we're going to need every bit of fun we can find in these troubling times._

_Regards,_

_Fred and George_

_P.S. We can't wait to see you on the 25th. Its pure torture here watching Ron and Hermione being kissy-kissy all the time._

_P.P.S. You'll be happy to know we have fulfilled your request and purchased new dress robes for Ron. Business was so good that we also decided to by new robes for Ginny as well._

Harry carefully opened the package that accompanied the letter. Knowing the twins, it could be bobby-trapped. He breathed a sigh of relief when nothing happened. Inside was selection of Fred and George's best Wheezes, including Harry's favorite, Canary Creams. He definitely wanted to get some use out of them this year. Then a thought hit him.

"The Marauders!" he said out loud to himself. "I should re-start the Marauders." He quickly wondered how Ron, Hermonie, and the twins would react to an invitation to help re-form the most famous prankster team Hogwarts had ever seen. "I'll ask them when I see them on the 25th."

Harry picked up the final letter. He recognized the handwriting as being that of Ginny Weasley, Ron's younger sister. He smiled. Ginny had had a crush on Harry since her first year and never seemed able to talk to him without blushing. This shyness grew after he rescued her from the Chamber of Secrets. But something had changed since last year. When he received her first letter just over a month ago, he was surprised. Ginny's letters had helped him get over the initial bout of depression and guilt he had been feeling over Cedric's death. She was probably the only one who truly understood what he had been feeling, courtesy of her own run-in with Tom Riddle in her second year.Since then, the two had exchanged several letters, discussing the new relationship between Ron and Hermione and getting to know one another better. Along the way Harry had stopped seeing her as Ron's little sister, and felt that he and Ginny had become friends. He was glad that she was finally able to talk to him. He also began to feel guilty for not noticing her before now. They both seemed to have a lot in common.

_Dear Harry,_

_Mom has just told us the news that Dumbledore is allowing you to come here on the 25th. Everyone is excited._

_I hope you have a happy birthday. Enclosed you'll find my present. I bought it in Diagon Alley last week. It's not much, but when I saw it I immediately thought of you. I hope you like it._

_You'll never guess what! George and Fred's joke business seems to have taken off after the mysterious investor helped them out. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you? wink, wink.  
_

Harry grinned. Unlike Ron and Hermione, Ginny had suspected something was up when the twins received his backing and had quickly confronted Harry about it. For some reason Harry couldn't lie to her, so he told her everything, after swearing her to secrecy.  


_Anyway, they made enough profit so far that they decided to do something nice for a change and bought Ron and I new dress robes. I only hope I'll get a chance to wear them this year._

_Your friend, _

_Ginny_

Harry opened the small packaged that accompanied her letter. Inside he found a simple silver chain with charm attached. The charm was in the shape of a phoenix, holding a lightening bolt. Harry looked at it more carefully. The lightening bolt looked exactly like the scar on his forehead. Also, the eyes of the phoenix appeared to be made of two small green stones. Turning the charm over he found that it was engraved.

_The phoenix of light will always triumph._

Harry put the chain on and tucked it under his shirt. Though the present was simple, Harry couldn't help but feel moved by it. Then Harry was struck with another thought.

_I hope there's another Ball this year. I'd really like to see Ginny's new dress robes._ Harry was startled by this thought. Where had it come from? It was soon replaced with the realization that it was now 9pm and Harry had been so engrossed in his studies and letters that he hadn't eaten. He silently wished he was better at transfiguration and that he was allowed to do magic. He began to walk to his door intent on going down to the kitchen when something on his dresser caught his eye. It was a large plate of chicken and a pitcher of pumpkin juice. Harry stared at it for several moments in confusion before walking over to it.  



	4. Chapter 3: The Burrow

**Chapter 03: The Burrow**

**============**

The last three weeks had been extremely strange for Harry. It began around 9pm on his birthday when he seemed to transfigure a plate of food in his room. What made it unusual was that he did it just by thinking that he needed food and he didn't receive a warning from the Department of Underage Wizarding.

The next shock came when he awoke the next day. Getting out of bed and walking over to his mirror, he was startled to see that he seemed to have changed physically. As near as Harry could tell, he had shot up about a full three inches overnight. In addition, his already toned body was slightly more fit and muscled than it had been. Then there was his hair. It had always been long and messy. But that morning it was cut crew-style. Then the last surprise hit him. He wasn't wearing his glasses, but he could see perfectly.

Over the next three weeks Harry began to notice that he seemed to be developing his magical abilities at a much faster rate then before. He no longer had to practice as much or read material as many times before he understood it. He couldn't wait to get to the Burrow and see the reaction of his friends to this new development.

================================================================

Finally August 25th arrived. Harry had packed his things and was waiting in the Dursley's living room. They had gone out, not wanting to be around when, in the words of his uncle, "Those freaks arrived."

Around 5pm the doorbell rang. Harry got up and walked to the door. Looking out the peephole he smiled as he saw Mr. Weasley and Ron standing there. Looking at Ron, he could see that he wasn't the only one who had changed. Though his height remained the same, Ron's body, like Harry's, had begun to develop some muscle tone and definition. He opened the door.

"Hi Mr. Weasley, Ron." He said. They stared at him in silent shock.

"Harry?" Ron asked. "You sure have changed. Blimey, you're as tall as me now!"

"What can I say, I've had a growth spurt." Harry said, smiling. They gathered up his things and put them in the car.

===================================================================   
As they drove to the Weasley's home, Ron couldn't stop looking at his friend. He had thought that the changes he had noticed in himself, Hermione and Ginny were surprising; but nothing prepared him for seeing his best friend. He had changed a lot. He was no longer the small, skinny, almost pathetic looking boy he had become friends with almost five years ago.

_Man, he's going to have the girls throwing themselves at him this year._ Ron thought. After about two hours they drove over a small bridge and approached the Weasley family home, the Burrow.

"We're here." Mr. Weasly announced. Ron and Harry grabbed Harry's things and proceed to walk up the stairs of the Weasly's front porch and into the front door.

"Harry!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed, running over to him and pulling him into a hug. "It's so good to see you. My how you've grown!" Harry couldn't help but smile. Over the last five years he'd come to view Mr. and Mrs. Weasley as substitute parents.

"Oh my god, Harrry!!!!!!!!" another female voice exclaimed and Harry was once again thrown into a bear hug, this time with Hermione. After a moment the two separated and Harry got his first good look at her. Looking at her, Harry could see that he and Ron weren't the only ones who had changed this summer. He had always thought of Hermonie as pretty, as girls go, but over the summer she had seemed to fill out rather nicely. She was stunning.  


"Hi Hermione. Miss me?" Harry said.

"Harry, is that you?" another pair of voices exclaimed. Fred and George Weasley had just entered the kitchen.

"Well mate, it looks like you finally out grew your midget stage." Fred said, smiling.

"Yeah, and from the looks of it we may have some competition with the ladies this year." George followed. After several minutes of small talk Ron, Hermonie and Harry excused themselves and began to carry Harry's bags upstairs. They had just entered the living room and were approaching the foot of the stairs when Ginny Weasley came down the stairs.

====================================================================

_Oh my God!_ Ginny thought to herself as she saw Harry. _He's really changed. He was cute before but now he's a stud!_

"Hi Ginny." Harry said, walking over and pulling her into a friendly embrace. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice that she too had changed physically. Ginny seemed to have matured a great deal since he saw her last. Gone was the knees and elbows little sister of his best friend. In her place was the beginning of a very beautiful young woman.

Hermione might be beautiful, but Ginny is absolutely gorgeous. Harry thought to himself.  


"Hi Harry." She replied, blushing slightly. They stood their looking at each other for a moment. A slight smile soon began to appear on Hermonie's face as she realized what was happening.

"Come on Harry, let's get your stuff to my room." Ron said, impatiently. Ginny headed for the kitchen and the trio climbed the stairs and were soon sitting in Ron's room, discussing the events of the last few months.

"Harry, when did this happen to you?" Hermonie asked, referring to his significant physical change. Harry began at the beginning, telling them about his vow at the beginning of the summer, his workouts, research, and finally the evening of his birthday.

"You mean most of it happened overnight?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Yeah. Strange huh? I even owled Dumbledore concerning it. He just wrote back and said it must have been a sudden growth spurt. But that's not all." He then proceeded to tell them about his increasing magical ability.

"That's very strange. I've never heard of a magical growth spurt like that." Hermonie said. "Did you tell Dumbledore about that as well?"

"Yeah. He didn't sound surprised but didn't give me any answers either. What about you guys?" He asked.  


"What are you talking about?" Ron asked.  


"Well, by the looks of things I'm not the only one whose gone through some changes as of late." Harry replied. "Ron, you've definately got more muscle than the last time I saw you. Hermione, you've obviously developed more. And Ginny."  


"What about Ginny?" Ron asked, suspiciously.  


"Well, she's changed alot." Harry said, blushing slightly, lowering his eyes to the floor. He missed the glance that Ron shared with Hermione.  


"I guess you're right." Hermione said. "Funny I hadn't really noticed until now. And now that you mention it, I think we've all been having an easier time with our DADA practice."  


Deciding now was a good time to chang the subject, Harry looked at the two of them. "So you two have finally figured out you're nuts for each other." Ron and Hermonie blushed quickly.

"Uh, Harry, I wanted to talk to you about that." Ron said. "It's okay isn't it? I mean, we don't want to ruin the trio." Harry laughed.

"It's more than alright. I'm glad your happy." Harry replied. "Besides maybe now you two will stop arguing all the time."  


"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Hermonie said, "We don't fight that much do we?" Harry just rolled his eyes.   


"So how's the rest of the family reacting to this development?" Harry asked. Ron groaned.  


"Mom and Dad are happy, but the twins have been a real pain. They won't stop teasing us." Ron answered.  


Harry's eyes suddenly snapped up at the mention of the twins.

"Speaking of the twins, I had a question I wanted to ask you. They sent me one of their joke kits a few weeks ago and I had an idea. How would you guys feel about resurrecting the Marauders?" He asked. Ron and Hermione glanced quickly at each other.

"We're in." they said in unison, and then blushed.

"You two have been spending way too much time together." Harry said, teasingly. "Okay. But I want to bring the twins in on this as well, after all they practically worship the originals."

"Can you imagine what their reactions are going to be?" Ron laughed. "I'll go get them now." Ron got up and walked to his bedroom door.

"Uh, Ron?" Harry said. Ron turned. "Would it be alright if we brought Ginny in on this too?" Harry asked.

"I suppose, but why?" Ron inquired, smiling. Harry glanced down at his feet, then back up at Ron.

"Well, it's just we've exchanged letters this summer and we've become pretty good friends." Harry said. "Plus, I know she's felt really left out of things the last two years." Ron looked at Harry for a moment.

"Sure. Why not." With that he exited. Hermonie looked at Harry.

"You're starting to like her, aren't you?" she asked, her tone clearly stating that she thought it was true. Harry's head turned towards her.

"Yes, no. I don't know." Harry said. "I mean, I was starting to consider her a friend but then when I saw her tonight it sort of hit me. I mean, she's a very pretty girl." Hermonie smiled. 

"Just be careful." She said. Harry was about to respond when Ron, the twins and Ginny walked into the room.  



	5. Chapter 4: The Marauders and a Blossomin...

**Chapter 04: The Marauders and a Blossoming Love**

**============**

If Ginny and the twins were surprised with the changes in Harry's appearance, they were absolutely dumbstruck over the conversation that had just finished. It had been an hour since Ron had come and pulled them out of the kitchen and back up to his room for what he termed, "a friendly chat."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had outlined their plan to the rest.

"That's absolutely brilliant!" George said.

"I agree. But the Marauders? I don't know. I mean, they're legends." Fred said. The terrible trio exchanged amused glances.

"I don't think they'll mind." Ron said with a smirk.

"How do you know?" Ginny asked.

"Because we know them!" Harry, Ron, and Hermonie exclaimed in unison. They then began to relate the story of the identity of the Marauders, including the truth about Sirius Black, Harry's godfather.

================================================================

"I still can't believe you've known the identity of the Marauders for two years and never told us." Fred said.

"We couldn't." Hermione said. "Too much was at stake."

"So what do you guys say? Are you in?" Harry asked. Fred, George and Ginny exchanged looks.

"Definitely!" they said, together.

"Good." Harry said, pulling a piece of parchment out of his pocket. "This is the Marauder oath. I based it on the one the original group had, except its now a binding magical contract. If you break it, you'll be hexed into next Tuesday. Everybody read it and then sign if you want to." The group looked at the contract.

_We the undersigned, henceforth to be known as the Marauders, do solemnly swear to uphold the Marauder name. We will play practical jokes on all except our own number, but especially on the Slytherens._

_We swear that we will never divulge the identity of our fellow Marauders even if we ourselves are caught._

_To this we attest._

One by one they all signed the parchment.

"What about nicknames?" Fred asked.

"Well, the original Marauders had nicknames based on their animagus forms." Hermione said.

"But none of us are animagus." Ginny protested.

"Maybe I can ask Sirius to teach us. I'm sure he'll be eager to help." Harry said. The others brightened at this. "Then it's agreed. Once school starts, the Marauders shall ride again."

=================================================================

Later that night Harry was unable to sleep. Quietly getting out of bed so as not to wake Ron, he threw his cloak on over his pajamas and tip toed down stairs. To his surprise he was not the only one awake. Ginny was sitting in an armchair near the fireplace in the living room.

"Couldn't sleep either?" she asked.

"No. Too much on my mind." Harry replied.

"Same here. Do you want to go for a walk outside?"

"Sure." Ginny rose and grabbed her cloak. Together they walked outside and began to wander down to the creek near the house. It was a quiet night. They talked about some of the events of the last few years, their hopes and worries. Not for the first time Harry found himself reflecting on how amazingly easy it was to talk to Ginny now. They spent hours talking about school, their hopes and dreams, and the war that both knew was sure to come now that Voldemort was back.  


As they walked, Harry couldn't help but notice how pretty Ginny looked in the moonlight. And how utterly content he felt with her at the moment. The a realization hit him. He was falling in love with Ginny. Panic at this realization swept through him; he had not had much experience with love and so was somewhat unsure of how to handle it. Glancing over at Ginny he felt the panic drain away. He stopped suddenly, and Ginny turned back to him.  


"Is something wrong?" she asked. Harry stepped closer to her.  


"Ginny, I want to apologize for ignoring you the last four years." Harry said. "The last couple of months we've been owling each other has made me realized what a great friend you are. I wish I'd realized it sooner." Ginny looked up at him.

"It's okay Harry. I guess if the situation was reversed I'd be a little put off by my best friend's kid brother with a huge crush on me too."

"Does that mean you don't have one anymore?" Harry asked, a hint of disappointment in his voice. Ginny caught it immediately.

_Dear lord, he sounds as if he was hoping I still did._ She felt a blush rising up in her body. She stepped a little closer to him.

"Yes." She replied. 

"Oh, well ok then." Harry said, his head slowly hanging. Ginny's heart nearly broke at the look of sadness on his face.  


"I don't have a crush anymore. I think I love you." Ginny blurted out. Harry's head shot up. "It's okay if you don't feel anything back, but I needed to tell you." Harry was speechless. Now it was Ginny's turn to hang her head and shift about.

"Ginny, look at me." Harry said. She looked up. "Ever since the end of last year, I've been having some very confusing thoughts and emotions. I never experienced what it was like to grow up with people who love me, so I'm not even sure I know what love is. But I realized that I missed you. And then after we started owling, I found myself looking forward to your letters more than Ron or Hermione's. Then when I saw you earlier tonight, it hit me. What I'm trying to say Ginny, is that I'm falling for you."

Ginny gazed in amazement. She never though she would here those words from Harry Potter. Tears of happiness began to form in her eyes. Harry saw this and reached out and pulled her towards him. He gazed into her brown eyes for what seemed like hours, before gently reaching his hand to her chin and tilting her head towards his.

Ginny closed her eyes as Harry's lips made contact with hers. She felt a rush of heat flash from his lips to hers and travel the length of her body. They stood locked in passionate embrace for several minutes before pulling apart.

"Wow." Ginny said.

"Wow." Harry agreed.  



	6. Chapter 5: Raid on Diagon Alley

**Chapter 05: Raid on Diagon Alley**

**============**

Harry and Ginny did not return to the house until well after 1 am. They had been sitting down by the creek, discussing recent events, as well as exploring their new relationship. To Harry it now seemd like ages ago that he had first met Ginny and the rest of the Weasleys. Looking over at Ginny as they walked back to the house, he felt a warm feeling go through his body. For the first time in his life he was content.  


Of course, there was some concern on Harry's part as to how Fred, George, Ron and the rest of Ginny's brothers were going to react to the change in their relationsip. The Weasley brothes were notorious for their feelings of overprotectiveness towards their sister.   


"They'll just have to accept it." Ginny had said. "Otherwise I'll have to hex them into next Christmas." They agreed to inform the rest of the Weasleys about their new relationship in the morning, before the trip to Diagon Alley for school supplies.

As Harry lay in his bed, he couldn't help but laugh at the sudden twists his life had taken up to this point. If anyone had told him such things would happen a year before, he would have told them they were crazy.  


=====================================================================

Harry awoke around 8am the next morning, feeling surprisingly refreshed despite the lack of sleep he had received the night before. Ron awoke a few minutes later.

"Good morning." Harry said, cheerily.

"Ugh. How can you be so happy this early in the morning." Ron complained. Harry smiled.

"Listen, Ron, I want to tell you about something."

"What's up?"

"Well," Harry began, his gaze shifting to his feet. "Last night I was having trouble sleeping, so I went downstairs." Harry continued explaining how Ginny was also up and how the two of them decided to take a walk. "Ron, Ginny and I.well, last night she told me she loved me." Ron looked at him, a look of total neutrality on his face.

"And?" Ron asked.

"Well, you already know that I'd come to view her as a friend, almost as good of one as you and Hermonie. Last night I realized I love her too." Harry answered nervously. He was very afraid that Ron would react badly, after all Ginny was his little sister. To his surprise Ron broke into a wide grin.

"Hermione told me she thought the too of you were getting cozy. And to be honest I saw something myself when we were talking about her yesterday." Ron said. "It's okay Harry. I'm happy for both of you. Just remember, if you ever hurt her, you'll have all six of her brothers to deal with."

"Don't worry Ron, I have no intention of hurting her."

"Good. Then lets go spread the good news." With that they got up and went down to breakfast.

====================================================================

"So you were out pretty late last night." Hermione commented as she and Ginny got up. Ginny blushed.

"I couldn't sleep. Neither could Harry. So we took a walk." She said, trying to sound nonchalant. Hermonie perked up at this.

"Oh? Anything interesting happen?" Hermonie said, smirking. Ginny blushed even more. "It did! What happened?"

Ginny explained how she and Harry had taken a walk down by the creek, how she had blurted out her feelings for him and how he had revealed his own. Then she told her about the kiss.

"It was the most wonderful feeling in the world." Ginny said.

"I'm happy for you."

"I just hope the rest of the family, especially Ron, is okay with it."

"Don't worry, they'll all be thrilled." Hermonie assured her. "Ron already suspected something. He noticed that Harry was acting rather odd after he saw you yesterday."  


"My brother picked up on something?" Ginny asked incredulously. "Looks your finally rubbing off on him." The two girls broke into laughter.  


=================================================================

Two hours later Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys were walking down the street in Diagon Alley. They had all reacted enthusiastically to the news that Harry and Ginny were now an item. As he walked hand in hand with Ginny, Harry couldn't believe his luck. He had never really experienced love in any form until he met the Weasleys, and now he was exploring the best kind of love with Ginny.

The new Marauders were at the moment sitting in Flourish and Botts Ice Cream Parlor. They had just finished buying their school supplies and were in a hurry to sit down somewhere and plan their first prank.

"Maybe we could hex the food at the Slytherin table to turn them all pink!" George said as the waitress brought their order to the table.  


"That idea has promise." Harry said, "But I think we need to improve upon it. This is going to be the first Marauder prank in twenty years. It has to be perfect." A few minutes later they were sitting at a table, discussing ways to expand George's idea. Harry glanced over at the front door in time to notice a young man enter and his eyes widened in shock. Standing there was his fellow fifth year Gryfinndor, Neville Longbottom. But it was how Neville looked that had Harry surprised. Normally somewhat on the pudgy side, Neville had apparently also gone through a growth spurt this summer. He looked to be at least three inches taller than Harry had remembered and was no longer pudgy.  


"Hey Neville! How was your summer." He yelled. The boy at the door looked around and upon seeing Harry started over to their table.

"Harry. Its good to see you." Neville said as the rest of the table got a look at the new and improved Neville.

"Pull up a chair Neville." Ron said, signaling the waitress. Neville sat down and ordered a sundae.

"So what's new?" Neville asked. Harry had just opened his mouth to speak when suddenly there was a large explosion, followed by several screams. The door to Flourish and Blotts opened and three dark hooded figures entered, wands pointed around the room. Harry recognized them immediately.

"Deatheaters." He mumbled. In a flash Harry stood up, his wand pointed at the trio. The rest of the Marauders, along with Neville, were also soon on their feet, wands out. The Deatheaters noticed the commotion and turned toward them.

"Avada" one of them began before all three slumped to the ground after being hit by a half dozen hexes.

"Ron, Hermonie, cover them." Harry ordered. Turning to the rest of the patrons he said, "Everyone stay down. There may be more of them out there." Then he walked over to the door that exited into Diagon Alley and opened it. He gave a loud gasp as he surveyed the scene outside.

Flames and smoke were billowing out of several shops. People were scrambling in several directions, obviously panic stricken. Then he saw them. A group of about thirty dark robed Deatheaters were slowly advancing towards Flourish and Blotts. As they made their way they shot dark curses at anyone who crossed their line of site. Harry felt rage well up inside him as he saw one Deatheater put the Cruciatus curse on a small child and laugh about it. Without thinking he opened the door wide and strode out into the street.

=====================================================================

"Hey, where's Harry going?" Fred asked. Harry had just flung open the door leading to Diagon Alley and walked out. The rest of the Marauders exchanged uneasy looks. Hermonie ran to the window and peered out.

"He's going to try taking on the Deatheaters himself!" she exclaimed. Then, acting with the same thought, all five of the Marauders rushed towards the door. They did not notice Neville follow behind them.

===================================================================== 

Harry fought to control his breathing and the rage that had built up inside of him as he stood in the street, watching the approaching Deatheaters. Surprised at the audacity of this lone wizard standing in the street, the group came to a halt.

"Potter. We meet again." The leader sneered and Harry immediately recognized it as Lucious Malfoy.

"Malfoy." Harry spit.

"So kind of you to save us the trouble of going into the Flourish and Blotts to find you. The Dark Lord will be pleased when we kill you."

"Don't make me laugh, Malfoy." Harry replied. "You're going down for what you've done today."

"Brave words for a mere boy, alone, facing thirty of the Dark Lord's finest."

"He's not alone." Ron's voice sounded from behind Harry. He walked up and stood beside him, his wand pointing at the Deatheaters. Harry glanced around and saw Hermonie, Ginny, Fred and George approach, all with their wands drawn.

"Ah, so Potter has friends. What a surprise. Though hardly a concern. Its still 30 against 6." Malfoy taunted.

"Make that seven you bastard." Neville replied as he took up position alongside George.

"Such foolish bravery." Malfoy sneered. "Attack!" The Deatheaters unleashed a storm of hexes and curses towards the seven. There was no hope of dodging them. Then at the last second, a soft golden glow appeared around the group, deflecting the curses. Harry and his companions recovered from the shock faster than the Deatheaters and immediately sprung into action. Hex after hex was thrown at the Deatheaters as the seven separated and began moving.

"Stupefy!" Harry cried, sending the Deatheater closest to him flying backwards. All around him the sounds of battle raged as curse after curse flew through the air. The Marauders seemed to be holding their own. Already nine of the Deatheaters were sprawled on the ground, unconcious. Several more appeared to be wounded. The battle raged for several more minutes, with more of the Deatheaters falling to the Marauders.  


"Harry! Look out!" Ginny shouted. Harry barely managed to dodge the curse that flew at him. Picking himself up off the ground, he turned and faced Lucious Malfoy.

"Expelliarmus!" Malfoy shouted, catching Harry as he turned. Harry's wand flew out of his hands and he was again knocked to the ground. Dazed, Harry tried to clear the cobwebs from his head.

"Now it ends." Malfoy sneered, standing practically on top of Harry. Before Malfoy could utter another curse however, Harry had put into practice the Muggle fighting tactics he had studied over the summer. His leg lashed out, hitting Malfoy in the groin. Harry scrambled to his feet as Malfoy doubled over in pain. Harry landed a vicious uppercut on Malfoy, sending him reeling backwards onto the ground, his wand hitting the ground. Suddenly another curse flew by Harry, narrowly missing. Harry turned and spotted McNair, another of the Deatheaters. McNair grinned as he raised his wand. He obviously thought Harry was helpless without his wand. He was wrong.

"Expelliarmus!" Harry shouted as he shot his hand out towards McNair. The look of surprise barely had time to register on the Deatheater's face before he was launched backwards, his wand flying into Harry's hands. He then turned back to Malfoy, who was struggling to his feet.

"You may have one this round, Potter." Malfoy wheezed. "But the war is far from over." With that he and the half-dozen still standing Deatheaters disapparated and disappeared.  



	7. Chapter 6: Revelations and the Newest Ma...

**Chapter 06: Revelations and the Newest Marauder**

**============**

Harry, Ron, Hermoine, Ginny, Fred, George and Neville were all seated in Professor Dumbledore's office. Seconds after Malfoy and the remaining Deatheaters had disaparated from Diagon Alley, Dumbledore had shown up with a group of wizards all wearing red robes with a golden phoenix on them. After assessing the situation and hearing what had happened, Dumbledore handed Harry a portkey and told all of them to wait in his office.

They had been sitting there for nearly a half hour when the door opened and Dumbledore strode in, followed by Mr. & Mrs. Weasley, Remus Lupin, Professor McGonnegal, Professor Snape, Hagrid, and Harry's godfather, Sirius Black.

"Sirius!" Harry exclaimed at the sight of his godfather. He rushed over too him and the pair hugged. "What are you doing here?"

"I was already here helping Dumbledore with something when we heard about the raid." Sirius answered, smiling at his godson.  


"And just what did you seven think you we're doing?" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed. "You could have been killed!"

"Now, now Molly. It is alright. They did nothing more than fate required." Dumbledore said. "I believe it's time that you all were told about the Prophecy of the Seven."

=====================================================================

The room sat in stunned silence. Dumbledore had just finished reading them the Prophecy of the Seven. Mrs. Weasley in particular looked as though she would faint at any moment. Sirius and Remus looked very pale. The Marauders exchanged looks.

"Professor, are you…are you sure?" Harry asked.

"Yes Harry, I am. As you can tell by the description, there is no doubt that you are the Great Phoenix the prophecy is speaking of. Likewise, after today, I have no doubt that you six are the six described as well." Dumbledore answered.

"But Dumbledore, there only children." Mrs. Weasley said. Dumbledore sighed, turning to look at her.

"Molly, these are the seven most unique individuals I have had the privilege of teaching. They have already seen and dealt with much more than most wizards their age. And if the prophecy is correct, they are our only hope." Now it was Sirius's turn to speak.

"Is there any way to confirm this prophecy further?" he asked, desperate to believe that his godson and friends might yet have a chance at a normal life.

"There is a way." Dumbledore answered, walking over to the group. "Do not be alarmed, I am merely going to cast a spell to reveal your animagus forms, if you have them." He pointed his wand at the group and said "Revelious Animagus." The group was soon surrounded in golden/red light. A cloud of mist appeared above the group. Slowly the mist parted and the seven figures hovered above the group. Above Harry was a Grand Phoenix, above Hermonie was a Owl, above Ron a Fox, above the twins Lions, above Ginny a Unicorn, and above Neville a Wolf. Harry and the others looke at each other in shock.  


"It is confirmed. They are indeed the seven the prophecy speaks about." Professor McGonnegall said, slightly shaken.

"You all have a choice in this matter. It is my firm belief that you our only hope of defeating the rising darkness. However, if you wish, you can leave this office and nothing more will be spoken of this." Dumbledore said, speaking quietly. The Marauders and Neville exchanged looks, almost as though they could communicate telepathically. Harry was the first to speak.

"I've been a target since the day I was born. I will not run away now. Voldemort has to much too answer for." He said. Then he turned to the others. "But you guys shouldn't have to give up your lives or happiness. I'll find another way."

"Sorry mate, you're not going to get away from us that easy." Ron said, stepping forward. "You are the best friend I've ever had. Do you really think I'd let you face this alone?" Hermione stepped forward next to Ron.

"Harry, I'm a marked person anyway. In case you've forgotten, I'm muggle born. Which means Voldemort will eventually come after me anyways. Personally, I'd rather go down fighting, with you."

"And if you think I'm going to let the man I love go off on some crusade while I wait home on pins and needles, you don't know me very well." Ginny said, stepping over to Harry and wrapping her arms around his neck. "In case you've forgotten, I love you Harry James Potter. And we're going to face this together." She pulled him towards her and kissed him. After a few seconds they pulled apart, both blushingly slightly.

"And if you think we're going to let two of our brothers and our sister face something like this without us, you're insane!" George said as he and Fred stepped forward. Harry's eyes widened at their comment.  


"Two brothers? But" he began.

"Harry, you prat. You're as much a part of the family and a brother to us as Ron is." Fred replied, smiling. Harry grinned; he had come to think of the Weasleys as his family and was happy to know they saw him as part of it as well. Finally Neville stepped forward.

"You forget Harry, I've already suffered at the hands of Voldemort and his followers." Neville said, referring to his parents who were now locked away in St. Mungo's Hospital for the Insane after having been tortured by Voldemort's followers. "There is no way I'm not going to be part of this." Tears welled up in Harry's eyes. All his life he had wanted a family; people to love him. He now realized that he had that and so much more.

"We're all with you Harry." Mr. Weasley said. "You seven may be the ones who will ultimately defeat Voldemort, but you're not going to be alone."

"Indeed. The entire Order of the Phoenix will fight by your side." Dumbledore said. "But there is much to do before the final confrontation. You must all be trained. Towards that end I have taken the liberty of revising your schedules for this year. You will unfortunately have to drop your electives. The only school courses you will be taking are DADA, Charms, Transfiguration, and Potions. In addition, you shall receive advanced training in the areas of magical combat, apparating, strategy and tactics, and advanced healing potions. I believe Harry will also want to instruct you in muggle self-defense. You will also begin learning to be animaguses. Now, you have three days before school starts. For your own safety, I insist that you all remain here at the school. Other then staying within school grounds, you may do as you please until school starts."

==================================================================  
The Marauders and Neville were sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room. They had spoken very little since they left Dumbledore's office. After a few minutes, Harry spoke up.

"Guys, I want to thank your for agreeing to stand by me." He said.

"We meant what we said." Ron replied. The others nodded in agreement. Harry smiled at him, then turned to Neville.

"Well, Neville, it looks like you're one of us now. I think we should make it official." Harry went on to explain to him about the Marauders. Neville was ecstatic about the concept.

"I'd love to join." He said. Harry pulled the contract out of his pocket and passed it to Neville, who signed it.

"It's official." Harry said. "The Marauders are back in business."

"Jolly Good!" a voice exclaimed from behind them. The seven whirled around to find Sirius and Professor Lupin standing there. Harry smiled at them.

"Just remember you two, any leaks about this and I'll personally hex you until next New Year's!" Sirius and Lupin laughed.

"Don't worry, Harry. All we ask is that you let us in on some of the fun." Sirius replied.

"Well, then, grab a chair. We were just about to continue an earlier discussion about the best way to announce the return of the Marauders." Hermonie said. With that the new Marauders and the two surviving old Marauders sat down and began discussing their plans.  



	8. Chapter 7: The Welcoming Feast

**Chapter 07: Welcoming Feast**

**============**

The next three days past quite quickly. The other Marauders decided to get a head start on their training, convincing Harry to begin teaching them muggle self-defense techniques. Harry was pleasantly suprised at how quickly they picked up on the Karate techniques he was teaching them. He also began teaching them the muggle warfighting strategies he had read about in books by Sun Tzu and Von Clauswitz. They also joined in on Harry's morning workout routine. The rest of their time was spent planning practical jokes or playing Quidditch. Harry, Fred and George were all disappointed that they would not have time to play for the house team this year.

In the evenings the group usually hung out in the common room. Fred, George, and Neville usually took turns play chess, while the two couples in the group, Ron and Hermione and Harry and Ginny would go off to some corner of the room and kiss.  


===================================================================

The night of the Welcoming Feast was dark and stormy. Ron, Harry and Neville were in their dorm getting ready.

"I'm sure glad I'm not one of the 1st years. Can you imagine coming across the lake tonight?" Ron said, as a loud clap of thunder sounded outside. Neville shuddered.

"I wonder what Malfoy's reaction was when we weren't on the train?" Harry mused, referring to Draco Malfoy, his long time nemesis at Hogwarts.

"Hopefully the slimy git didn't have the guts to come back after what you did to his father over the summer." Neville said, referring to the showdown in Diagon Alley. Soon they were dressed in their school robes. The exited their dorm and met Fred and George on the stairs. Nodding to each other, the five descended the stairs into the common room, where Ginny and Hermonie were already waiting. Ron went over to Hermonie and pulled her into an embrace and kissed her.

"Hmm." Hermonie moaned. "What was that for?"

"I missed you." Ron replied. George, Fred and Neville snickered.

"Ugh. Please don't do that in front of us. It's disgusting. Right Harry?" Fred said. "Harry?" But Harry was not paying attention. He and Ginny were in their own embrace. After a few awkward moments the couple parted.

"Everybody ready?" Harry asked, blushing. Everyone nodded. "Now remember, when the fun starts, we have to act normal. We don't want anyone figuring out it was us."

====================================================================

The Great Hall was a loud and boisterous. The students of the four Hogwart's houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin were all gathered at their tables, excitingly talking about the events of the past summer. The primary topic was the article that appeared in the Daily Prophet two days ago, recounting the details of the attack on Diagon Alley. Smack on the front page of the paper was a picture of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, George, and Neville, bravely standing up to thirty Deatheaters.

When the great doors opened and the Marauders entered the hall, a hushed silence fell over all assembled. Harry could feel every eye in the hall looking at them.

_God what I wouldn't give to have a normal life._ Harry thought, sadly. Ginny seemed to sense his uncomfortableness and gave his had a gentle, reassuring squeeze. He looked over at her and smiled. 

As they made their way over to the Gryffindor table, Harry noticed Draco Malfoy sitting at the Slytherin table. His all too familiar sneer was firmly in place. Just as they had sat down at the table, the doors to the Great Hall opened once again and Professor McGonnagall strode in, leading a line of 1st year students in. As they drew near the front of the hall they stopped and waited. One by one they were called forward to sit on a stool and have the sorting hat placed on their head. After a few moments, the hat would shout out their house. Gryffindor got 12 new students, Hufflepuff 15, Ravenclaw 14, and Slytherin 8. The Professor Dumbledore arose to give his welcoming speech.

"Welcome to you all. Before we begin, I have a few start of term announcements. Due to the return of Lord Voldemort," many of the students gasped at the mention of the Dark Lord's name, "we have been forced to place additional restrictions on all students. No student will be allowed to roam the corridors alone after 8pm. Members of the Order of Phoenix, as well as the Hogwarts teaching staff will be patrolling the halls and the grounds. Quidditch will be allowed to continue, with extra supervision. As usual, the Dark Forest is off limits. Additionally, the third floor corridor on the right hand side is once again off limits to all but members of the Order. Due to recent attacks by Lord Voldemort's followers, I regret to say that Hogsmeade visits will be canceled. In their place, the staff has decided to schedule three dances to take place on Halloween, Christmas, and at the end of the term. And now, let the feast begin." With that the house tables filled with food and the students began eating.

"So Ron, Hermonie" Harry asked with a twinkle in his eye, "Who are you going to take to the dance?" Ron and Hermonie looked at Harry, then each other and blushed. Harry smiled to himself. Even though they had been together for three months now his two best friends still acted like shy schoolchildren anytime anyone hinted at their relationship. Turning back to his plate, Harry caught Ginny looking at him.

"How about you Harry?" she asked, smirking, "Whose the luckly lady you're going to take?" Her eyes danced with mischief.

"Well, there is this one girl." Harry said. "She's a real fox. Or should I say unicorn." Ginny blushed, while the rest of the table watched the exchange in amusement.

About twenty minutes later, as the feast was drawing to a close, a loud popping sound was heard. Heads all around the hall turned towards the Slytherin table where the sound seemed to becoming from. Almost at once the other three houses burst into laughter. Seated at the Slytherin table in the exact spot which moments before had contained Slytherin students were pink chimpanzees dressed in white ballerina outfits. After a few moments, the chimpanzees turned back into Slytherins, however the ballerina outfits remained. More laughter roared through the hall. Professor Snape, the head of Slytherin looked furious. Then another pop sounded, this time coming from the head table. The students turned and once again roared with laughter. Snape was now wearing a pink ballerina outfit and a sign around his neck that read WILL DANCE FOR SHAMPOO. Most of the staff table was chuckling under their breath, including Professor Dumbledore. Snape looked livid, his eyes whirling around the room, trying to decide who was responsible. After a few more seconds another pop sounded and a message appeared in smoke above the Great Hall.

THIS PRANK WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE NEW MARAUDERS - FLAME, WISE, SLY, PRECIOUS, PAWS, MANE, AND FANGS.

It took all of Harry's concentration to maintain an appearance of normal amusement. The Marauders first prank had been a success. The nicknames had been Ron's suggestion and were based on their animagus forms. Harry was Flame, Hermonie was Wise, Ron was Sly, Ginny was Precious (alluding to the fact that unicorn blood and horns were considered precious), Fred was Paws, George was Mane, and Neville was Fangs.

_Snape is going to be livid when he finally figures it out._ Harry thought.  



	9. Chapter 8: The Order of the Phoenix

**Author's Note:** Just want to respond to some questions. At this point I don't know how much of the original story will be changing. My primary purpose for doing this revision was to address some spelling and gramatical errors that appeared with alarming frequency in the story originally, as well as to expand on a few scenes which, upon review, were a bit thin. Other than that I don't expect there to be a major shift in the story.  


**  
**

**Chapter 08: The Order of the Phoenix**

**============**

As the Marauders were getting ready to leave the Great Hall and follow their fellow Gryffindors up to their dorms, Professor McGonnagal came walking over to them, wearing an expression that was a cross of sterness and amusement.

"Just a moment." She called. They all stopped, noticing the look on the face of their Head of House. They stood for several moments before all the other students had cleared the hall. "Professor Dumbledore wants to see you in his office." The Marauders exchanged looks. They were sure most of the teachers had already figured out that they were the Marauders. They only hoped that Professor Dumbledore would find it humorous.

They followed Professor McGonnagal into the corridor to the stone gargoyle that marked the entrance to the headmaster's office.

"Canary creams." She said and the entrance opened. The Marauders exchanged looks of amusement at the choice of password. They stepped through the entrance and made their way up the stairs.  


"Ah, the Marauders. Do come in. We were just discussing you." Dumbledore said, with a twinkle in his eyes. Professor Snape was also there, his face red with anger, as well as Professor Lupin and Sirus, both red from laughing.

"Headmaster, I demand they be expelled for this!" Snape snapped.

"Oh come off it Snivellus." Sirus said, "It was only some good natured fun."

"I quite agree Severus. And you must admit, it was original." Professor Lupin said, smirking.

"I think that considering everything we're going to have to face, we should be allowed some fun, Professor." Harry said.

"I quite agree Harry. Just try not to do any permanent damage to anybody or the castle." Dumbledore said. "And Severus, I must ask your word that you will not reveal the identity of the Marauders to anyone. If I am not mistaken, their nicknames are taken from the animagus forms. These need to remain secret for as long as possible." Snape grumbled his reluctant agreement. Dumbledore turned back to the Marauders. "The reason I have asked to see you is to address the issue of where you shall be receiving your advanced training. Obviously it cannot be done in full view of the rest of the school. You will report to the third floor corridor on the right hand side for those classes."

"But Professor," Hermonie said, "You just announced that that area was off limits to all but members of the Order. Won't it look a bit odd if we go there?" Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling.

"True, quite true. That is why it has been decided that you seven will become probationary members of the Order. This will give you the authority to be in that area. You will not receive full membership however, until you have progressed further in your training. Follow me please."

Dumbledore led Snape, McGonnagall, Lupin, Sirus, and the Marauders out of his office. A few minutes later they arrived at the door to the corridor in question. Dumbledore opened the door and they stepped in. Harry, Ron, and Hermonie, who had seen the corridor in their first year, gasped. It had been completely transformed. It now contained a large room, with several smaller rooms off to the side. On the floor of the main room was a painting of a giant phoenix. A large circular table sat in the middle surrounded by about six dozen chairs. Most of the seats were occupied. The Marauders recognized some of the occupants of the room, including Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill Weasley, Charlie Weasley, and Mad-Eye Moody. Professors Snape, McGonnagal, and Lupin all walked over to empty seats and sat. Sirus also took a seat.

"My friends, it is with great pleasure that I introduce to you seven new members. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Neville Longbottom." Dumbledore said, and then turn to the seven. "Please raise your right hands and repeat after me."

"I, your name, do solemnly swear to uphold the honor and virtues of the Order of the Phoenix. I will use my powers and my position to protect the innocent and to battle the darkness wherever it is found. I will gladly sacrifice all that I have, including my life to ensure the victory of the Light over the Darkness." The Marauders all recited the pledge. As they did so, they were surrounded to a red/golden light similar to the one that protected them during the battle in Diagon Alley. A voice spoke.

"Behold! The seven have come. They have pledged their loyalty to the Light!" The normal school robes they wore now transformed into robes worn by the other members of the Order. After a few seconds the light disappeared. Several members of the Order looked at each other in confusion and awe.  


"And now, if you would take your places at the table." Dumbledore said. They walked over to the empty seats and sat down. As they did so, the rest of the Order broke into thunderous applause.

================================================================

Twenty minutes later the meeting broke up. Harry and the rest of the Marauders stayed behind after everyone else left to examine the training complex. There was a room for practicing dueling, a room for potions, a gym, and two general classrooms. After a few minutes, the gang decided to head back to the Gryffindor tower. They reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, who beamed.

"Ah, seven Gryffindors in the Order of the Phoenix." She said, smiling, "The rest of the houses will be so jealous."

"Merlin." Harry said and the painting swung open to admit them. They climbed through the portrait hole and made their way into the Common Room.  


"Well, that was certainly exciting." Fred said, settling into a chair.  


"Yeah." George said, agreeing with his twin. "Though I'm a little surprised mom didn't raise a rucus when Dumbledore announced we were going to become members of the Order."  


"I'm sure she did." Harry said, grinning. "But this time she probably did it to Dumbledore privately. How he managed to calm her down, that's my question."  


"Don't know, mate." Ron replied. "All's I know is, anyone who can win an agrument with mom when she's got her Irish up, is someone Voldemort better be very afraid of." Harry smiled at his friend's use of Voldemort's name. Since he arrived at the Burrow earlier in the summer Harry had been trying to teach the rest to use his name instead of that ridiculous 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Name' crap.  
  
"Very true." Harry said. The Marauders then turned the conversation to more lightly matters; namely planning their next pranks. After about a half hour, Harry yawned.  


"Well, I think its about time I turn in." he said, standing up. The rest of the Marauders nodded their heads in agreement and got up.  


"Sleep well, Harry." Ginny said, placing a soft kiss on his lips.  



	10. Chapter 9: Training Days

**Chapter 09: Training Days**

**============**

The next morning the Marauders continued with their workout routine, having awoken around 6am. Although the rest of the group was still lagging behind Harry, who at been at the routine for several months, they were slowly catching up to his level. After their workout they returned to the Gryffindor tower to shower and change into their robes. They then made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Just as they were about to enter the Great Hall, a familiar drawl sang out.

"Well, if it isn't Potty, Mudblood, and Weasley. Oh, and I see you've added a few more worthless riff-raff to your little group." Draco Malfoy said, sneering. Crabbe and Goyle, Malfoy's two sidekicks, stood on either side of him sniggering. Harry turned towards them.

"Shove it Malfoy." He said contemptuously.

"What's wrong Potter? Finally starting to realize you picked the losing side by standing by the muggle loving fool Dumbledore? I tried to warn you about the scum you hang out with." At this statement, Ron, Neville, and the twins all started yelling at Malfoy and tried to rush him. Hermione, Ginny, and Harry held them back.

"Guys, he's not worth it!" Ginny warned. "He's nothing but a worthless piece of filth. Don't waste your time." Malfoy's face hardened at this statement.

"I'd watch it Ginny." He said. "Its bad enough that you're a Weasley but now you're hanging around with this crowd, even dating Potter. That can be hazardous to your health you know." Upon hearing Malfoy's words, rage boiled up inside of Harry. Before anyone could reply, Harry had whirled around towards Malfoy and punched him hard in the face, busting his nose.. Malfoy let out a yelp and threw a hand up to his nose. Harry grabbed his arm and wrenched it behind his back and slammed him into the wall. Crabbe and Goyle took a moment to get over the shock of Harry actually physically attack Draco and moved to help their leader. The rest of the Marauders, who had placed themselves between the pair and Harry, stopped them.  


"Move and Hagrid will have two pink ferrets to awe his Care of Magical Creatures classes with." Hermione warned.  


"I'd watch my mouth Malfoy. If you ever threaten Ginny or any of my friends like that again, you'll end up in worse shape then your father did this summer." Harry said, coldly. "Its decision time, Draco. Your lord," Harry spat, "is going to get what's coming to him. And anyone who sides with him will too." The sound of footsteps rapidly approaching brought Harry's attention from Malfoy. He turned slightly, maintaing his grip on Malfoy, to see Professor Lupin walking towards them. Harry pulled Malfoy away from the wall and shoved him into Crabbe and Goyle.  


"Is there a problem here?" Professor Lupin said, surveying the scene. Harry and the rest did not answer. Finally Harry took a deep breathe, released it and spoke.  


"No problem Professor." Harry said. "I was just explaining to Mr. Malfoy the danger of making threats towards my friends." With that Harry turned and walked into the Great Hall. The rest of the Marauders quickly explained to Professor Lupin what happened.

"Twenty points from Slytherin for threatening another student, Malfoy. An additional ten points from Slytherin and Gryffindor for fighting." Lupin said, before walking off. Malfoy remained silent, glaring as the rest of the Marauders followed.  


===============================================================

Word quickly spread throughout the school about the confrontation between Harry and Malfoy that morning. By afternoon most of the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff students were pointing and laughing whenever Malfoy came into a room. The Slyterins on the other hand were livid.  


That afternoon Harry, Ron, Hermione and Neville had their first Potions lesson of the year. Snape was in an especially bad mood between the practical joke at the opening feast and the news of what Harry had done to Draco. His anger and attitude towards Harry seemed to worsen as he spent most of the class trying to embarrass Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville. He did not fully succeed however, as each had made a special effort over the summer to improve their potions knowledge. This seemed to incense Snape even more.

That evening was the first of their advanced classes, Advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts, which was being taught by Mad-Eye Moody. Unlike normal DADA class being taught by Professor Lupin, Moody's primary objective was to improve their magical combat skills. For over an hour he forced them to square off against himself and one another, until all were exhausted.  


"You all did exceptionally well." Moody said, "But you have a long way to go. You got lucky in Diagon Alley. The Deatheaters underestimated you. But that won't happen again. Now get back to your dorms. We will continue this another day."

=================================================================

And so it went. For the next four weeks the group attended their normal classes in the mornings and then spent the afternoons and evenings being trained by the Order. Of the seven Harry had made the most rapid progress, though the rest were only slightly behind. He was still the only one of the seven who could perform any wandless magic, though only minor spells. Physically they were in the best shape of anyone in the school. Fred, George, and Neville, the three unattached Marauders, were soon becoming the center of attention for many of the girls in the school, all hoping they would be asked to attend the Halloween dance with one of them.

The most exciting part of their training was with Professor McGonnagall. For two weeks they had been studying the theory of animagus transformations. Finally they were ready to attempt a practical transformation. To their surprise, as well as the surprise of Professor McGonnagall, each was able to achieve a partial transformation, all except Harry. On his first try Harry was able to complete the transformation.

"Excellent Mr. Potter." Professor McGonnagal said as Harry transformed from a Grand Phoenix back into his normal body.

"Wicked Harry!" Fred exclaimed.  


"Awesome, mate!" Ron said.  


"Show-off." Ginny teased.  


After several more weeks of practice all of the Marauders had mastered the transformations. Professor McGonnagall was astonished. Clearly these seven were more magically powerful then anyone realized.

=========================================================

The Marauders continued to play pranks around school, mostly on the Slytherins but sometimes on the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, and even their fellow Gryffindors. Betting was rampant as the students wagered on the identities of the Marauders. A few students noted that there were seven names and that Harry's circle of close friends was now seven, but nobody took the connection seriously. In the five years that Harry, Ron, Hermonie, and Neville had been at Hogwarts, none had ever had a reputation as a prankster. The same was true of Ginny, who had been at Hogwarts for four years. Indeed, of the group, only Fred and George had reputations as pranksters, but they were quickly dismissed because the usually acted alone and usually were very vocal in taking credit.

"If only they knew!" George exclaimed one evening in the common room after everyone but the Marauders had gone to bed. They had spent most of the evening discussing their recent pranks, as well as the astonishing pace their training was taking.  


"Listen, guys. I've been thinking." Harry said.

"Uh, Oh." Ron said. "When Flame starts thinking, I get nervous."

"Oh shut up Sly." Ginny said. "Go ahead my darling Flame."

"Anyways." Harry said, "I think we can improve our odds against Voldemort and his Deatheaters through some creative tactics. I mean, all the stuff we're learning is great, but its also stuff that they know as well."

"What did you have in mind?" Hermonie asked.

"Well, what about incorporating some of Paws and Mane's bag of tricks into our arsenal?" Harry asked. Ron broke into a grin. He was the best at strategy among the group.

"Flame, that's bloody brilliant!" He exclaimed. "True nothing they have will do any real damage, but it might be enough to knock them off guard." The group spent the next three hours talking about ways to use their gags in battle. They decided to test their ideas during their next ADADA class.

================================================================

Mad-Eye Moody was laughing. He had told Dumbledore and the others that these seven had excellent potential and he was right. Not only were the exceptionally gifted when it came to ADADA, but they had just proved themselves to be excellent tacticians. It had been a long time since anyone had gotten the best of him in a one on one duel, but Mr. Potter had done so tonight, with the help of several of Fred and George's Wizard Wheezes. Moody's hair and skin had only turned back from an awfully shade of purple a few minutes ago.

"Excellent Mr. Potter." He said, admiringly, turning to the rest of the group. "I see I was right when I told Dumbledore that you seven had potential. I would never have thought to use gag items to distract my opponents." The group beamed at Moody's words. He was considered the best Auror the Ministry of Magic ever had, so his praise made them feel especially proud.  



	11. Chapter 10: Dumbledore's Concern

**Chapter 10: Dumbledore's Concern**

**============**

"Ah Harry, thank you for coming to see me." Dumbledore said, greeting Harry as he entered the Headmaster's office. Professor McGonnagall had approached Harry at lunchtime and told him that the Headmaster had wanted to see him.

"No problem, professor. What did you need to see me for?" Harry asked.

"I was wondering Harry, has your scar been bothering you at all this year?" Dumbledore asked.

"No. Not at all." Harry said, the realization dawning in his eyes. "That's really odd now that I think about it. I haven't even had a dream about Voldemort since the first week of summer." Dumbledore's face reflected mild concern.

"Indeed. The number of Deatheater attacks has also decreased, not only here but abroad as well. I fear that Lord Voldemort is planning something very big."

"But wouldn't I be able to sense it? My scar's always hurt when he was feeling pleased or cruel." Harry asked, his own alarm rising.

"I'm afraid I can't answer why your scar has not been hurting. Perhaps Voldemort has discovered a way to block the link that your scar gives you. Or perhaps he is finally learning to control his emotions." Dumbledore said. "In any event, I must ask you to come to me immediately should you dream or feel anything, even the slightest twinge."

"Yes sir." Harry replied.

"Good, now run along. I'm sure you and your friends have a lot of preparation ahead of you for the Costume Ball tonight." Dumbledore said. Harry turned and left the office.

"What are you planning, Tom?" Dumbledore said out loud in a worried tone. "And how much do you know about our Mr. Potter?"  



	12. Chapter 11: The Costume Ball

**Chapter 11: The Costume Ball**

**============**

After his conversation with Dumbledore, Harry made his way up to the Gryffindor Tower. After giving the password to the portrait of the Fat Lady, he entered the common room. Several people were there, working on homework or just relaxing. He spotted the rest of the Marauders off to the corner.

"Hey guys." He said, walking over to them.

"What did Dumbledore want?" Hermonie asked in a hushed voice so the rest of the common room wouldn't here. Harry explained to them about his scar not hurting since after the Third Task, as well as his absence of nightmares and the decline in Deatheater activity. Hermione and Ginny exchanged worried glances.

"What do you think he's up to?" Ron asked, referring to Voldemort. Harry shrugged his shoulders.  


"Knowing Tom, it won't be good, whatever it is." Harry replied. They sat talking for a few more hours. Suddenly Hermonie shot out of her seat.

"Oh, my God. The ball starts in two hours. Ginny, we have to get ready." She said, as Ginny jumped out of her seat. They both rushed upstairs.

"They need two hours to get ready for a costume ball?" Harry asked, incredulously. Ron, Fred, George, and Neville all laughed.

"Women." Neville said, grinning.  


====================================

An hour later Harry, Ron, and Neville were in their dormitory putting on their costumes. They had debated for weeks what they were going to wear, until Neville suggested something. He was a fan of muggle cinema, and had once seen a western about a group of seven gun fighters who were hired to protect a town against an army of bandits. Comparing the incident in Diagon Alley with several of the scenes in the movie, Neville couldn't help but draw parallels between the movie and their lives of the last few months. So he suggested they all dress up as cowboys. More accurately, Harry would dress a sheriff and the rest would dress like his deputies.

Though they all liked the idea, they all agreed that it would draw too much attention to them. So Harry would dress like a sheriff, Ron and Neville would dress like his deputies, Fred and George would dress like Indians, and Hermonie and Ginny would dress as saloon girls. Several other muggle-born Gryffindors heard about the western theme and also decided to participate.

Harry finished putting on his boots and stood up. He picked up the belt with the gun holster and secured it around his waist. Next he took a muggle toy revolver and placed it in the holster. Finally, he grabbed his hat. Next to him Ron and Neville had finished with their costumes as well.

"Shall we mosy on down to the common room?" Harry said, using a cowboy word he'd heard somewhere before. Ron and Neville chuckled. With that the three boys exited their dormitory.

===================================================  
Harry, Ron, and Neville were sitting at a table in the common room, waiting for their dates. The first to arrive was Susan Miller, a pretty fourth year who was Neville's date. Neville stood as she descended the staircase and walked over. They then walked arm and arm out through the portrait hole. Ron glanced nervously at his watch.

"What's taking them so long?" he asked. "The dance starts in fifteen minutes." Harry was about to respond when a noise attracted his attention to the stairs to the girl's dormitory. His breath caught in his throat. Standing at the top of the landing were the two most attractive women he had ever seen. Ron looked over and gasped. As they descended down the stairs, both rushed over to greet their dates. As expected, both were wearing saloon girl outfits which only served accentuated their physical beauty.  


"You look beautiful." Ron said, putting his arms around Hermonie's waist and pulling her to him for a kiss. Next to them, Harry and Ginny were in an embrace of their own.

"Do I really look ok?" Ginny asked.

"Ginny, you look absolutely perfect. I just hope I can fight off all the other guys who will be drooling over you." Harry said. Ginny blushed.

"Have I told you how much I love you?" Ginny replied.   


"Yeah, but I can always stand to hear it again." Harry said grinning.  


"I love you." Ginny replied. They kissed again and then the two couples headed for the door.

===============================================================  
Once again the house elves had out done themselves with the decorations. The Great Hall looked magnificent. The glow of hundreds of Jack o Lanterns lit the hall. The house tables were gone, replaced by several dozen smaller circular tables, all arranged around a dance area in the middle of the hall. The tables were decorated with orange and black linens.

"Oi, Harry, Ron, over here!" Fred Weasley called. The foursome headed over to the table where Fred and George, along with their dates Katie and Angelina, as well as Neville and Susan, were seated. A few minutes later Professor Dumbledore, who looke ridiculous as a muggle businessman, stood and the hall fell silent.

"Welcome to the Hogwart's Costume Ball. Let the feast begin." He said. Food then appeared on the tables. Ron imeediately dived in, as usual.  


After everyone had eaten and the table cleared away, the band appeared and began to play a love song. Harry stood and turned to Ginny.

"May I have this dance, my love?" he asked. Ginny stood and the two walked onto the dance floor. Soon Ron and Hermonie, as well as several other couples joined them. Harry looked down at Ginny and smiled. 

As they danced, Harry found himself reflecting on the current state of his life. Despite the growing shadow of war on the wizarding world, Harry was happy and content for the first time in his life. He held in his arms an amazing woman whom he loved deeply and who returned his affections. He had five best friends on whom he could count on and have fun with. In Mr. & Mrs. Weasley he had found the parents he always wished he had. He also knew that there were dozens of others, from Professor Dumbeldore, to the Hogwarts staff, to the members of the Order, who respected and cared for him. They were willing to risk their lives to help him, protect him and fight beside him in the upcoming battles. They would die for him. And that was where the true strength of the side of light resided. It was something that Voldemort in his twisted mind would never be able to understand or grasp.

_That's why we'll win._ Harry thought.

As the evening wore on, Harry and Ginny danced almost every dance, taking only a handful of breaks for refreshments. Finally the last dance of the evening was being played.

"I wish this night wouldn't end." Ginny said as she and Harry danced.

"I know. I could stay like this forever." Harry replied as he pulled her closer to him. Their eyes locked. Harry brought his hand up to Ginny's chin and tilted her head up to meet his. He leaned in and gently brushed his lips against hers. Suddenly he reared back, gasping in pain, his hand grasping his forehead. He then collapsed to the floor, his body limp and Ginny let out a scream.


	13. Chapter 12: Voldemort's Return

**Chapter 12: Voldemort's Return**

===================================

_Harry felt like he was floating. One moment he had been dancing with Ginny, then his scar burned with unbelievable pain, and now he was here in the midst of a dark, fog covered forest. He heard sounds off in the distance and began walking towards them._

_A few moments later he walked into a clearing and was met with a terrifying sight. Hundreds of Deatheaters were assembled, facing a tall man with snake-like facial features. Harry gasped as one of the Deatheaters turned towards him. A moment later he relaxed as he realized that he could not been seen. Suddenly Harry understood. He was having a vision._

_"Greetings, my loyal servant." Voldemort said. "Tonight is the night we start our campaign to bring down the Ministry and that muggle-loving fool Dumbledore. As we speak, the Dementors of Azkhaban are revolting and freeing my imprisoned followers."_

_"What of the aurors?" a voice asked. Harry looked and saw Professor Snape._

_"Ah, Severus. A good question. Thanks to my newest servant, the aurors will not even be aware there is a problem. That is until we attack their headquarters later tonight." Voldemort answered. "Allow me to introduce to you our newest comrade, Cornelius Fudge." _

_There were sounds of surprise as the Minister of Magic stepped forward, out of the shadows. Fury welled up inside Harry. Despite Fudge's attempts to discredit him and Dumbledore, he had always viewed the Minister of Magic as a misguided fool, not a cold, calculating Deatheater.  
_

_'So that's why he wouldn't listen to us.' Harry thought.  
_

_"Before we launch our assault however, there is one more matter to take care of. I have discovered that there is a spy in our midst. This person has been feeding information to the Order of the Phoenix." Voldemort said, drawing his wand. "Did you really think you would escape unnoticed, Severus?" Snape paled. He knew the game was up. __as Two Deatheaters grabbed him and threw him forward before Voldemort.  
_

_"Go to hell." He muttered. A cruel smile crossed Voldemort's lips._

_"You first. Avada Kadvra." A beam of green light lept from Voldemort's wand and struck Snape, who fell to the ground, lifeless. "And now my loyal followers, it is time to attack."_

_Instantly Harry's vision blurred, to be replaced a short time later by a view of the Ministry. Around him, dozens of Ministry officials were shouting and fighting for their lives as Deatheaters and Dementors attacked. Then just as quickly, the vision dissolved again and was replaced by the scene after scene of attack against other targets._

===========================================================

Harry bolted up off the floor. Blood was dripping down the side of his face from his scar.

"Harry, are you all right?" Professor Dumbledore asked. Harry saw a crowd gathered around him. Ginny was kneeling next to him, sobbing.

"Azkhaban." Harry gasped. He went on to explain his vision, including the revelation that Fudge was a Deatheater and Snape's execution. Those around him paled slightly at the news.  


"Fudge is a Deatheater?" Hermione questioned. Harry nodded.

"This is not good." Dumbledore said, turning to Professor McGonnagall. "We'll divide into two groups. I will take half the Order and go to Azkhaban. We must try and stop as many of the prisoners from being released as possible. You will take the rest and go to the ministry." The members of the Order began to divide into groups. Harry pushed himself off the floor.

"Professor, we're going too." Harry stated. Dumbledore turned and looked at him.

"No Harry, I cannot allow that. You're training is nowhere near complete enough."

"I don't care. I am tired of being relegated to the sidelines. Voldemort and his followers have made my life a living hell. Its time for payback." He stated. The rest of the Marauders gathered around him.

"Harry's right." Ginny said. "Like or not this is our fight just as much, maybe more so than yours. Its time we started contributing." Hermonie, Ron, Fred, George, and Neville nodded in agreement. Dumbledore sighed. He knew they were right.

"Very well. You will go with Professor McGonnagall."

"Voldemort will be at Azkhaban." Harry stated.

"Yes. But you are not yet ready to confront him. And I will not allow you to confront him until you are." Dumbledore replied. He reached into his robes and pulled out a bag. Inside were several phoenix pins. "These are specialized portkeys. Merely state the destination you wish to go to and they will take you there." He handed them to Harry and the rest of the Marauders. Within several minutes all the members of the Order had disappeared.

================================================================

When the Marauders and the members of the Order reappeared outside the Ministry of Magic a few moments later, they breathe a sigh of relief. Nothing appeared to have happened yet. Professor McGonnagall immediately started placing her troops for battle.

"You seven must stick together, no matter what happens. If you're cornered, your portkeys will take you back to Hogwarts. You just need to shout 'evacuate.'" She said. Just then several Aurors exited the building. Seeing the group of wizards gathered outside, one of them came over.

"What is going on here?" he demanded.

"I am Professor McGonnagall. These are members of the Order of Phoenix. We have received intelligence that Lord Voldemort's forces are preparing to attack the Ministry." She replied. The man laughed.

"I highly don't that. First of all, everybody knows that Voldemort is dead." The man began.

"He is NOT!" Harry shouted. "He is back. I've seen him."

"And who are you?" the man spat. Harry brushed his hair to the side, revealing his scar.

"Harry Potter! You are under arrest for the murder of Cedric-" but his statement was cut off by the sound of curses being thrown. The trio whirled around. Advancing on the positions of the Order were dozens of Deatheaters.

"Holy shit!" the Auror yelled. The Marauders immediately took cover and began firing curses at the Deatheaters. Harry's hair was singed as a fire curse narrowly missed him. All around, Aurors and Deatheaters were falling, but the forces of light seemed to be gaining the upper hand. He glanced over at Ginny and couldn't help but smile. Even in the midst of a life and death struggle, her face dirtied and body sweating, she was absolutely beautiful.   


Then the balanced changed.

They felt their approach first. The ground trembled ferociously. Harry looked up.

"Oh my god." Hermione gasped. Approaching the scene of the battle, their battle clubs destroying buildings as they moved forward, were half a dozen fully grown mountain trolls.

"This is not good." Ron said.  



	14. Chapter 13: The Fall of Azkaban

**Chapter 13: The Fall of Azkaban**

===================================

While Harry and the Marauders, as well as half the Order under Professor McGonnagall were fighting Voldemort's forces outside the Ministry, Dumbledore took the other half of the Order to Azkaban.

When they arrived, they found that the gates to the great wizarding prison were already opened. The bodies of two of the special Auror guards lay on the ground. The group drew their wands and passed through the gates, fanning out so that they could cover a larger area.

The grounds immediately on the other side of the gate were deserted. An eerie silence engulfed the whole island.

"Everyone remain alert." Dumbledore said. After several minutes they approached the gigantic castle that served as the prison. As they approached the entrance, a tall, black-robed figure appeared, its red eyes glowing with anticipation.

"Greetings Dumbledore. I see you were foolish enough to come." Lord Voldemort, aka Tom Riddle, said hissing. "And I see you've brought some friends. Excellent."

"I see you are pleasant as ever, Tom." Dumbledore replied, sarcastically.

"Don't call me that! That person is dead!" Voldemort said in anger. Then he calmed down and smiled again. "Very nice Dumbledore. But you will not distract me by making me angry. Allow me to introduce you to a few of my friends."

A wave of cold swept over the members of the Order. Dozens of Dementors slowly glided towards them. Behind the Dementors were the Deatheaters.

"Expecto Patronum!" a series of voices shouted. From among the members of the Order, a series of silvery shapes charged forward, tearing into the Dementors, driving some of them off. Then, all at once, all hell broke loose as the Deatheaters began hurling curses at the Order. Green, red, and blue bolts flew through the air. 

The members of the Order scattered, attempting to doge their foes curses. Most were successful, but several were hit, dropping to the ground.

"Stupefy!" Sirius cried at the Deatheater nearest him. He smiled with grim satisfaction as his opponent fell to the ground. He glanced around at the scene unfolding before him. Several members of the Order were sprawled on the ground, motionless. The rest were fighting with grim determination, but it was obvious the odds were not in their favor. In addition to the five-dozen Dementors, there were over a hundred Deatheaters against only about three-dozen members of the Order. 

Sirius fired another Patronus towards a Dementor that was stalking one of the wounded members of the Phoenix. The Dementor glided off. Hearing a scream behind him, he whirled to see Remus Lupin, on the ground, writhing in pain, clearly under the influence of the Cruciatus curse. Sirius fired a curse at the Deatheater, hitting him in the chest, and releasing Remus from the curse. Sirius ran over to him and helped him up.

"Thanks Padfoot." Remus said, trying to catch his breath.

"My pleasure Mooney." Sirius replied, before they both turned their attention back to battle before them.

=================================================================================

  
"We finish this once and for all Dumbledore." Voldemort said. While the rest of the Order and Voldemort's forces were fighting, the two wizards faced off against each other. "Today you die." With that he hurled a death curse at him. Dumbledore managed to dodge the curse, and sent another in return.

"You cannot win Tom. Even if you manage to kill me there are others that will take my place. And they will defeat you." Dumbledore replied. Voldemort avoided Dumbledore's curse.

"I suppose you are referring to young Mr. Potter." Voldemort said with a sneer. "He too shall bow before me as I drain his life away."

The duel continued for several minutes. Dumbledore was clearly a very powerful wizard, and in his prime would easily have been a match for Voldemort. However, age was rapidly taking its toll on Dumbledore. He had several near misses with some of Voldemort's curses, as evident from the scrapes and blood on his robes. Voldemort too had several small injuries, but being younger, was not as vulnerable.

Finally luck ran out for Dumbledore. A shrapnel curse exploded near him, throwing him to the ground and injuring him. Smugly, Voldemort stalked over to him.

"How the mighty have fallen. Now you die!" Voldemort said, raising his wand and pointing it at his long time foe. But before he could utter the death curse, a voice rang out from behind him.

"Not today, Tom!"  



	15. Chapter 14: The Rescue

**Chapter 14: Rescue**

===================================

Harry threw himself out of the way of the Troll club that swung at him. Rolling to the side, he sat up and fired a stunning curse at the troll. It hit dead on, knocking the troll the ground. He stood up and made his way over to the others. The were busy firing curses at a group of Deatheaters.  


"Something isn't right here." Ron said, as he ducked another killing curse.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, having just sent another curse towards a Deatheater.

"Doesn't it seem odd that Voldemort didn't send more troops to attack the Ministry? I mean, it looks like he only sent enough too…"

"…keep us busy." Harry finished, realization dawning on him. "That's because this is only a diversionary attack! We've got to finish this and get to Azkaban."

"Any suggestions?" Ginny said as she ducked another curse.

"I've got an idea." Hermione said, turning to the rest of them. "We've got to get the rest of the Marauders over here though."

"Fred! George! Neville! Get over here!" Harry shouted. The three Marauders broke from their positions and made their way over to Harry, Ron, Hermonie, and Ginny. Harry quickly explained the situation.

"What's the plan Hermione?" Neville asked.

"Everybody join hands. When I count to three, we stand up together and say Maximus Expelliarmus. It's a curse I read about last year. When one wizard casts it, it has an effect five times the power and radius of the normal disarming spell. If several wizards cast it while joining hands the effect increases a hundred fold." The Maraunders joined hands and waited for Hermonie to count "Three!" she shouted.

"Maximus Expelliarmus!!" seven voices shouted. There was a blinding flash and a large boom. The Deatheaters and Trolls still attacking the Ministry were lifted off the ground and slammed backwards. Silence fell over the battlefield as the rest of the Order and the surviving Aurors looked around in surprise. Harry spotted Professor McGonnagall and ran over to her. Her robes were dirty and fussed, but other than that, she seemed to be okay.  


"Professor! We need to get to Azkaban immediately! This was a diversion." Harry said, urgently. He heard the rest of the Marauders come up behind him.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow it, Potter." McGonnagall said. "I have strict instructions from the Headmaster that you seven are to be kept safe." Harry exploded.  


"Damn it professor! If we don't go there now, Dumbledore, Sirius, Remus and the rest are going to die! I am not going to sit by and let that happen!" Harry whirled around and muttered something and the Marauders disappeared from sight.

=====================================================================

The battle at Azkahban was not going well for the Order. Most of the Dementors had been driven off and many Deatheaters were laying dead or injured on the ground, but more than half the members of the Order present were also down. Sirius and Remus were engaged in a fierce fight with six Deatheaters, one of them Lucius Malfoy and another none other than Minster Fudge.

"We have you now, Black." Fudge spat.

"I wouldn't count on that, Minister." A voice called from behind him. The Deatheaters whirled, only to be hit by a volley of curses from the Marauders, who had just appeared.

"Harry! What are you doing here!" Sirius said. "Dumbledore sent you to the Ministry!"

"It was only a diversion, designed to keep us busy. We took care of it and came here." Ginny replied as she cast a charm that tied the six prone figures up.  


"Where's Dumbledore?" Harry asked. The group looked around.

"Over there!" Ron cried. Turning, they say Dumbledore and Voldemort dueling. Even from this distance it was easy to see that Dumbledore, though fighting with great skill, was slowly being worn down.

"We have to help him!" Hermione said. They immediately began to move towards the pair, only to run into a wall of Deatheaters. Curses began flying everywhere. Anger slowly burned brighter and brighter inside Harry. They had to reach Dumbledore.

"Use the spell we used at the Ministry!" Harry shouted. "Remus, Sirius, we need a shield!" Sirius and Remus each conjured a shield around the group. The Marauders joined hands and pointed their wands at the group of Deatheaters.

"Maximus Expelliarmus!" they shouted in unison. Once again, all the Deatheaters within a hundred yard radius were thrown to the ground. Sirius stood, his mouth gaping in shock.

"What was that?" Remus asked in awe. Hermione was about to answer when a noise behind the group interrupted her. Professor McGonnagall and the rest of the Order had arrived.

"Potter! I thought I told you not to…" She began, then seeing the large group of Deatheaters lying on the ground, stopped. A high-pitched laugh drew everyone's attention back towards the duel between Voldemort and Dumbledore. Voldemort was laughing. Dumbledore was laying on the ground several yards apart, clearly hurt.  


"Oh no." Hermione whispered.  


"Come on Marauders, we need to get up there." Harry said. With that the Marauders disapparated.

========================================================================

  
The Marauders reappeared a few yards behind Voldemort. Harry glanced at his friends.

"Ready?" he asked. His friends nodded with determination. As they approached the scene of the duel, they could hear Voldemort taunting Dumbledore.

"How the mighty have fallen. Now you die!" Voldemort said, raising his wand and pointing it at his long time foe.

"Not today Tom!" Harry shouted. Voldemort whirled around, and found himself facing six drawn wands. Harry did not have his drawn, since his wand and Voldemort's would not work against each other, being brother wands. But Voldemort did not know that Harry could do wandless magic.

"Ah, Potter. What a delightful surprise. Now I can rid myself of all my foes in one sweep." Voldemort said. "Whom should I start with? Your redheaded friend? Perhaps the Mudblood. Or better yet, you're girlfriend."

Rage boiled inside Harry. The memory of those Harry cared for who had suffered because of Voldemort flashed in his mind. Suddenly he was engulfed in a glowing white aura.

"Pyruss Phoenix!" Harry cried, raising his hand. Out of his palm flew a flame in the shape of a phoenix. The shape flew towards Voldemort who tried to raise a shield. The spell impacted the shield, shattering it and sending Voldemort sailing through the air. He landed several yards past Dumbledore. Staggering, he got to his feet, realizing that he could not win this battle.

"Till we meet again, Potter." He spat, and then disappeared.  



	16. Chapter 15: Surprises

Chapter 15: Surprises

============================

Harry Potter was mad. It had been six hours since the Marauders and the surviving members of the Order had returned to Hogwarts after confronting Voldemort's forces at the Ministry of Magic and at Azkaban. Professor Dumbledore was resting comfortably in the school hospital under the watchful eye of Madame Pompfrey. Though gravely wounded during his duel with Lord Voldemort, he was expected to make a full, albeit slow, recovery. Madame Pompfrey had insisted on giving every one of the Marauders a complete examination when they returned. She didn't seem to believe them when they told her they hadn't been injured.  


Harry supposed he should be thankful that Dumbledore was going to be all right. He should be thankful that although the Order suffered heavy losses, they had inflicted a great deal more losses on Lord Voldemort's forces and had succeeded in repelling the attack against the Ministry. But he was not. First, Azkaban had fallen, with the Dementors and the former prisoners now rallying under Lord Voldemort's banner. Second, and at the moment more infuriating to Harry, was the fact that Lord Voldemort had run away after Harry and the rest of the Marauders had confronted him.

The Marauders were currently sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room, having only an hour ago finished telling the story of the battle to the rest of Gryffindor house. Ron and Hermonie were snuggled up against each other on one couch, with Harry and Ginny on the couch opposite of them. Fred, George, and Neville were sitting in oversized armchairs. All were gazing into the fireplace, lost in thought.

_I wish the bastard had stayed. Then we could have finished this._ Harry thought to himself. 

"So do we." The rest of the Marauders said aloud, all at the same time. Harry looked at them confusingly.

"You do what?" he asked. Now it was the rest of the Marauders who looked confused.

"You were just saying how you wished Voldemort had stayed around at Azkhaban, so we could have finished things." Ron said.

"And we agree." Fred said.

"But…I didn't say it. At least not out loud." Harry answered. Hermonie's eyes widened. Harry turned towards her. "Yes I'm sure I didn't say it!" he snapped. Then realization dawned on him. 

_"Well this is certainly an interesting turn of events." Harry thought to himself._

_"Yes it is." Hermonie agreed._

_"What's going on?" Neville asked nervously._

_"Apparently we've developed the ability to communicate telepathically." Ron answered._

For the next several minutes the group continued to experiment with this newfound power. They discovered that not only could they talk to each other, but that they could all drop one another from the link, so that one or more of the group could have a private conversation.

_"This should come in real handy during class." Ron said to Harry. _Harry smirked. Hermonie and Ginny looked at Harry and Ron.

"Don't even think about using it in class." They said in unison.

"How did you know that! I turned the link off to you!" Ron said.

"Because, dear brother, we know the two of you all to well." Ginny answered.

=============================================

The mood of the school the next day was somber. The _Daily Prophet_ was reporting the full results of the battles, including the discovery of Minister Fudge's body in the uniform of a Deatheater. The editorial page of the newspaper was filled with rage over the betrayal of Fudge and over the audacity of Voldemort's forces in staging the attacks. It was also filled with a sense of foreboding. After all, both the Ministry and the Order had suffered terrific casualties during the raids. Several articles lamented over the apparent lack of planning and coordinating between the Ministry and the Order and the fact that for all the protections around the Ministry and Azkaban, for all the vaunted training of the Aurors and the Order, it was a group of students from Hogwarts who had saved the day.

Harry threw down the paper in disgust. The same people who were now beating their chests about the lack of preparedness for the attacks were the same spineless jelly fishes that only a few weeks before were ridiculing any notion of Voldemort's return. And yet, as much as he hated to admit it, they did have some valid points. Certainly there was no excuse on the part of the Order for not being prepared. Though it hadn't bothered him at the time, he now couldn't help but wonder about why the Order had not recruited more members or conducted any pre-emptive strikes against Voldemort's forces. Indeed, it seemed that they were reacting rather than acting.

"_You're right Harry, I've been thinking the same thing." _Ron said through their telepathic link. The rest nodded in agreement also. Harry was about to say something when a giant owl flew into the Great Hall and landed at the Head table. Professor McGonnagall took the letter that was attached to its leg and opened it. After a few moments she finished reading the note and stood up.

"May I have everyone's attention please!" she shouted. The hall grew quiet. "As you all know, Minister Fudge was killed last night when he, along with several of Voldemort's Deatheaters, attacked Azkaban prison. As a result, the Ministry of Magic held an emergency session this morning to select a new Minister."

"I wonder who it's going to be." Hermonie said. Professor McGonnagal l surveyed the room, then broke into a slight smile.

"It is my privilege to announce that by a vote of 150 to 45, the new Minister of Magic is none other than Professor Dumbledore."

A thunderous applause arose throughout the hall. The Gryffindor table arose to its feet and was clapping the loudest. Gradually the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables also rose to their feet. The Slytherin's on the other hand, looked livid at the news. Malfoy in particular seemed to greet the news with much distaste; his face scowling up at the Head table.  



	17. Chapter 16: Regrouping and Secret Plans

Chapter 16: Regrouping and Secret Plans

==========================

Several days had passed since the election of Dumbledore to the position of Minister of Magic. Because of his injuries, the Ministry had also elected a Deputy Minister of Magic, naming Arthur Weasley to the post. This of course meant a rather large increase in salary for the Weasley family. Harry was very happy for them. If anybody deserved a break, it was the Weasley's.

Among their first acts as the new leaders of the Ministry, Dumbledore and Mr. Weasley had issued a declaration of war against Voldemort and his forces. However, because of the losses suffered by the Order during the battles for the Ministry and for Azkaban, as well as the Ministry losses incurred since Voldemort's return, there was little that could be done at the moment.

A rapid recruiting and training program was of course immediately launched, and wizards and witches flocked by the hundreds to volunteer. Most of these volunteers were sincere, however, some were really Deatheaters, assigned by Voldemort to infiltrate and spy. Several were caught, but there were undoubtedly more. For this reason, elaborate security measures and background checks were instituted.

Despite the enthusiasm of the volunteers, the fact remained that it would take time to train them to the point that they would be of any use against Voldemort. Therefore the Ministry and the Order were now forced to take a defensive stand.

========================================== 

"This sucks." Harry said, frustrated. 

The rest of the Marauders nodded in agreement. In the weeks after the battle of Azkaban, the Marauders had increased their training regime to a furious pace. All wanted to prove to the Order that they were ready to take a more active role in the war. Harry was still the strongest and most powerful of the group, but the rest of the Marauders were not far behind. All had now mastered wandless magic, and had rapidly blown through their classes and the training courses the Order set up. By their own admission, the Order realized that these youngsters were making astonishing progress. They had even admitted that by Christmas the group would probably have learned everything necessary to take their N.E.W.T.S. All of this would normally have been good news to the Marauders.  


However, despite their progress, despite what they had done at the Ministry and at Azkaban, the Order refused to use the Marauders in the war.

"Why the hell are they so damned skittish about using us?" Ron asked. "We're better trained and more powerful than half the Aurors in the Ministry!"  


"I don't know, but frankly, I'm getting tired of this." Harry replied.

"What can we do?" Hermione asked. "You heard Dumbledore, if we do anything without their permission we will be kicked out of the Order and probably Hogwarts."

"Hermione, for crying out loud. We're going to satisfy our N.E.W.T.S. in three weeks! We don't need to be in Hogwarts!" Ginny said, exasperated.

"Yeah." Neville agreed.

"But what about the Order?" Hermione asked.

"What about it? They want to fight this as a defensive war. Most of them don't seem to get the idea that the best defense is a good offense." Fred said. "Except Moody. He gets it."

"Yeah, but he's got too much respect for Dumbledore and our dad to say anything." George agreed.  


Hermione sighed. They were right. She too was tired of everyone treating them like children. The truth was in the last few months the Marauders had developed into wizards more powerful than most of the Order. They had even killed that night at the Ministry; maybe not intentionally, but they had. What's more, they had all been dealing with danger since they first arrived at Hogwarts. It seemed that no matter what they did or accomplished, however, it would not be good enough to convince the rest.

"So what do we do?" Hermione finally asked, breaking the silence.

"I'll tell you what we're going to do. We'll play their little game until we've completed our N.E.W.T.S." Harry said, a air of determination emenating from him, "Then we take matters into our own hands. I have no intention of sitting around while everyone else fights. And I am definitely not going back to the Dursley's next summer. We won't go after Voldemort. Not yet. First we need to take out his support system, his followers. So we're going to wage a guerilla war. We find a secure base of operations, one that nobody, not even the Order can find. We start setting up a network, a way to get information on Voldemort, the Ministry, and the Order. Then we hit Voldemort's troops when the least expect it."

The rest of the Marauders stared at him. They had never heard Harry speak with such determination before.

"You mean leave Hogwart's voluntarily. Won't everyone be upset? What do we tell our families?" Neville asked. The Marauders looked at one another, thinking. Finally Hermione spoke.  


"There might be a way we can arrange to stay in communication with a few select people without it being traced, but I'll have to do some more research to be sure." She said.

"Well, that would solve one problem. But how are we going to live? And more importantly, where are we going to live?" Ron asked.

"As far as the how part, I don't think that is going to be a problem." Harry answered slowly. The others turned to him. "You are all aware that my parents left me an inheritance when they died. I'm afraid I've never really told you how extensive it is." He paused. "All told, I have about 500000 Galleons (that's 2.5 million pounds sterling or 3.6 million US dollars folks) in my accounts. That doesn't include the stocks in Wizarding and Muggle business that they had acquired."

Ginny looked at him in shock. They had known that Harry's parents had left him a decent inheritance, but they never knew it was so large.

"I'm pretty sure my parents would have wanted me to use it to do good. And I can't think of anything better than using it to get rid of Voldemort and take care of my family." Harry finished, grinning slightly.  


Tears began forming in the eyes of the Marauders. What he said was true. They had all come to view each other as family, and were perhaps closer to each other than they were to their biological families. They would do anything for each other.  


"Ok." Fred said after a moment. "But we're not going to just rely on you. George and I have been selling our gags to some different joke shops around Britain and we've managed to save up a small sum as well. Not as large as your savings, mind you, but still somewhat large. All and all I'd say we've made about 25000 Galleons (that's about 125000 pounds sterling or 183000 US dollars)."

"What!" Ron exclaimed. "You never told us."

"We were going to tell everyone at Christmas time." George said. "We wanted to make some more before we told Mom."

"Okay. So that solves the money issue." Hermione said. "But we still have to figure out where we're going to operate from. It will have to double as our quarters too. The more places we need to protect and hide from everyone, the more likely it will be that we'll be found."

"Perhaps I can be of assistance." A voice they knew all to well called from behind the group.  



	18. Chapter 17: Moody's Discovery

Chapter 17: Moody's Discovery

================================

The Marauder's heads whirled around at the sound and let out a collective gasp. Standing in the Gryffindor Common room, having obviously overheard their conversation was their trainer, Mad-Eye Moody. His one good eye was looking directly at Harry while is magical eye roamed across the faces of the rest of the Marauders.  


"Moody!" Harry exclaimed, and then his eyes narrowed. "If you utter one word of this to anyone…" Moody chuckled.  


"Relax Potter, I have no intention. In fact, I'd like to help you." Moody said, matter-of-factly and grinning slightly. "I tend to agree with you. I've said it before. You seven are the most powerful wizards and witches I've ever been involved in training. And you are more wise than many my age." At this the Marauders began to beam.

"You said you could help with a base of operations?" Ginny asked after a moment. Moody nodded.

"I have a friend. He's a muggle soldier, special operations to be exact." Moody said. Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, and Neville looked confused. "Special operations soldiers are sort of a muggle version of the Order. They are the most elite of all muggle soldiers, trained to conduct small unit operations against overwhelming odds and doing so covertly. Much like you seven are discussing."

"And this friend can help us?" Harry asked. "How?"

"He is the commander of a special unit, elite even by special operations standards. It it's a small team made up of special operations personnel from several countries. They operate across national borders, combating terrorist organizations and conducting other black operations. They're called Rainbow. Though those of you who have ever read a Muggle newspaper may have heard them referred as the Men of Black." Hermione gasped.

"You mean they actually exist! I thought it was some over imaginative reporter!" she said excitedly. Moody shook his head and proceeded to tell the tale of Rainbow.

"But how do you know them? And how can they help?" Neville asked.

"I met their leader some years ago. Being as high up in their intelligence apparatus as he was, he was privy to the existence of our world. Occasionally we have had to have dealings with them. Anyways, about a year ago the decision was made to relocate Rainbow to a more secure location. I think it would be the perfect place for you."

"But what about the rest of the muggles there?" Hermione asked.

"The members of Rainbow all carry the highest security clearances there are. True, most aren't aware of our world. But to answer you're question, have any of you taken a good long look in the mirror lately? Given the proper tutoring, you could easily pass for soldiers of 20 or 21." The Marauders glanced around at each other. Moody was of course correct. All had grown up rather quickly over the last few months.

"My plan is to reveal your true identity to their leader and perhaps his deputy. As far as the others are concerned, we can place a disguise charm on you so that no one would recognize you. I'll leave the cover story as to why you are there up to their leader." Moody said. "Additionally, we can place you all under the Fidelius charm. I'll be your secret keeper." The Marauders looked at each other and discussed the idea telepathically.

_"What do you think guys?"_ Harry asked.

_"It sounds like a good idea. My only concern is that even with the Fidelius Charm, we'll still be traceable when we are away from wherever this Rainbow is located. On top of that, Moody would still be able to give us away if he wants to."_ Hermione said.

_"Isn't there someway we can make it so he can't?" _Ginny asked. _"What about a contract, like the one we signed?"_

_"That's a good idea but in order for it to be any good, it would have to have an oblivate or Avada Kadavera curse. Moody isn't going to be afraid of anything less. Assuming we can get him to sign."_ Ron said.

_"I think he'll do it. Hermione, is there someway to make a person unplottable?" _Fred asked.

_"I think so. But I'll have to look it up." _Hermione answered.

_"So are we agreed? We're really going to do this? With Moody's help?"_ George asked. They all nodded to each other. They turned back to Moody who had been watching the silent discussion with interest.

"Obviously you seven have more power then you have let on, if you can communicate telepathically. Good." Moody said, smiling again. "Never let the other guy know exactly what you're capable of. Have you made a decision?"  


"We'll do it." Harry said. "On one condition. We want you to sign a magical contract that you will not reveal our secret to anyone unless you receive permission from the group." Moody thought for a moment.

"Agreed. Though you may want to use the Obliviate Maximus curse instead of the normal Oblivate charm. It is much harder to break."

Harry went over to the table and grabbed a piece of parchment. He wrote quickly, and then cast a silent spell on it. Then he handed the parchment to Moody to sign, which he did.

"Now, you seven start working out your plans. I'll arrange for my friend to meet you at Christmas time, after your N.E.W.T.S." Moody said, then turned and left.

The Marauders grinned at each other. Christmas was going to be even more interesting then they had thought.


	19. Chapter 18: NEWTS, Christmas and Rainbow

**Chapter 18: N.E.W.T.s, Christmas and Rainbow**

**====================================**

Three days before Christmas, the time for the Marauders to take their N.E.W.T.s had arrived. That morning Professor McGonnagall had informed them that they were to report to the third floor corridor where, in Harry's first year, the Sorceror's stone had been hidden at 8 o'clock sharp. 

As most of the students had already left to go home for summer vacation, the Marauders had almost the entire castle to themselves. By now they had made detailed plans concerning their departure from Hogwarts. Hermione had been able to find a very old spell that allowed a wizard or witch to make themselves unplottable, except to those they choose to reveal it to. They tested this out by making several brief trips to Hogsmeade and to Diagon Alley. There they stocked up on necessary wizarding supplies and withdrew a all of Fred and George's money and approximately 70000 Galleons from Harry's vault. The shrunk everything to make it easier to transport.

The group had also discovered a method for communicating with their family and friends.

The concept was similar to a muggle instant messenger. They would give a special parchment to those they wanted to speak to. These parchments would be charmed so that only the Marauders and those they choose to give them too could use them, and then, only if they were doing so of their own free will. All someone had to do was write the name of the person he or she wanted to contact on the top of the parchment, then the message and say send. The message would then appear on the parchment of the recipient and a special charm would send a notice to that person.

The Marauders had also spent their time setting up time-delayed pranks throughout the school, including the Common Rooms and teachers quarters.

============================================================

When 8 o'clock came, the group made its way to the evaluation room.

"Ah, right on time I see." Dumbledore said. "Very well, you shall each be tested in each subject one at a time. Harry, you are first."

For the next three hours, the Marauders were tested on every subject they had studied at Hogwarts. All seemed to perform the required pratical portions of the exams with little or no effort. The same was true of the written exams. All of the professors were shocked. Despite their knowledge of the prophecy, despite all of the indications over the last few months, they found it astonishing that these seven students, all under age, could be so powerful.

"Congratulations to you all." Dumbledore said, "You have all received a grade of Outstanding on your exams. However, I must impress upon you the seriousness of remaining at Hogwarts. You have mastered the magic, but you have more training you must accomplish before you can fight with the Order."

"Yes professor." Harry said, forcing the smile he felt forming to disappear.  


"Boy is he in for a surprise." Ginny said through the mind link.  


========================================================================

Christmas day was soon upon Hogwarts. Ron, Harry, and Neville awoke early and made their way down to the Common Room. There, already seated near the tree were Ginny, Hermione, Fred, George, Remus and Sirius.

"Merry Christmas." Ginny greeted as she pulled Harry into an embrace and kissed him. Next to her, Hermione was doing the same with Ron. A series of whistles and catcalls rang out. Blushing the four pulled apart.

"Sod off." Harry said to a grinning Sirius. Harry sat down on the couch, his arm around Ginny. The group then began exchanging presents.

"Thanks mate." Ron said to Harry as he opened his gift. It was a brand new wizarding chess set. Soon everyone was done opening their gifts. Harry and Ron looked at each other.

_"You ready?"_ Harry asked, telepathically.

_"Yeah, lets do it."_ Ron replied, telepathically. The both arose and pulled a small box out of their pockets. They then sat back down next to Hermonie and Ginny.

"Ron and I have one more present each to give." Harry said with a smirk, then turned to Ginny. "Ginny, the last six months have been the happiest of my life. And although it took me four years to realize it, I know that I am completely in love with you and don't ever want to be without you." Harry said, then stopped. Ron spoke to Hermione.

"Hermione, we've been friends since our first year. No matter what has happened you've always stood by me. And the year that we've been together has been amazing. Like Harry just said to Ginny, I know that I don't ever want to be without you." Ron said, pausing.

"Both Ron and I have discussed this and there are no other witches that we want to spend our lives with." Hary said. "Now I know we're too young to be getting engaged and married," he paused, heading off an explosion from Sirius, "But nothing is going to change the way I feel."

"Or me." Ron said. Opening his box, he revealed a small ring with a ruby heart attached. "Hermione, will you accept this ring as a promise of my love and devotion and that when the time comes and we are old enough, of my engagement ring?"

"Yes." she replied, tears forming. Harry then opened his box to reveal a similar ring, except this one had a emerald green heart shaped stone in it. He repeated what Ron had just said to Hermione.

"Oh Harry!" Ginny cried, throwing herself at him. "Of course I will." The two couples sat holding each other. Around them, the rest of the new Marauders and the two old Marauders sat smiling.  


"God they remind me so much of James and Lily." Sirius whispered to Remus. Remus nodded.  


===============================================================================

Later that evening everyone gathered in the Great Hall for Christmas dinner. Besides the Marauders and Sirius and Remus, the others present were Professor Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody, Mr. & Mrs. Weasly, Mr. & Mrs. Granger, Bill Weasly, Charlie Weasly, Percy Weasly and his wife Penelope, and Mrs. Longbottom, Neville's grandmother. As Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Ginny sat down, Mrs. Weasly caught site of the rings that Hermione and Ginny now wore.

"Oh my god!" she said. "You can't be! You're too young!" Now all eyes were on the two couples.

"Relax mom," Ron said, "We know that. These are not engagement rings. If you'll notice the girls are wearing them on their right hand. These are promise rings." After a brief explanation of the morning's events, everyone settled in to enjoy dinner. The food was terrific and the Marauders enjoyed the time with their families, particularly since they knew it was the last time they would probably see them in a while. Earlier that day Moody had informed them that he had made their arrangements and he would meet thim in the Common Room. They would be leaving that night.

==========================================================================

After dinner the Marauders excused themselves and headed back up to the Common Room. A short time later Mad-Eye Moody entered the Common Room.

"Right. I've made arrangements with my friend to meet you in London. Go to the Pink Pagoda. Wait there. A man will approach you. The code phrase is `Can you tell me how to get to Pickadilly Square.' You will respond with `The fastest route is through the clouds.' He will then tell you your destination. You'll have to apparate there with him. He'll be there at 2 am tonight. Good luck." He said. Harry stood up and shook his hand.

"Thanks for your help." Harry said. "We've made arrangements for the parchments to be delivered to yourself and several others, along with a note of explanation. In order avoid raising suspicions, your parchment will also be delivered." Moody nodded. One by one he shook the hands of the rest of the Marauders. When he was done he turned and walked out of the Common Room. Harry checked his watch. It was 11 o'clock.

"We better get our stuff together." Harry said.

======================================================================

Three hours later the Marauders were in London. Using fake IDs, the group had entered the Pink Pagota and had waited for almost a half hour. They had cast the spells necessary to disguise their appearance, as well as making them unplottable before they left Hogwarts. Finally a man about fifty, about 6', and in good shape approached their table.

"Excuse me, can you tell me how to get to Pickadilly Square?" Harry gave the countersign. The man motioned for them to follow him outside to the alley.

He then turned to Harry and the group.

"My name's John Clark. Nice to meet you. We'd best be getting out of here." He went on to explain where the base was exactly. Harry grabbed Clark by the arm and the Marauders disapparated.

They reapparated a few minutes later in a remote corner of a British Special Air Services (SAS) base. After passing through several security checks, they made their way to an empty barracks building. Upon entering they say a thirty five year old Latino male waiting for them. The barracks was rather Spartan, containing a kitchen, recreation area and a large sleeping area lined with bunks.

"Welcome to Rainbow." John said. "This is my Executive Officer, Domingo Chavez."

"Thank you." Harry and the others dropped their disguises. "My name's Harry Potter, this is my girlfriend Ginny Weasly, my best friend Ron Weasley, my other best friend and his girlfriend Hermione Granger, and our friends Fred and George Weasley and Neville Longbottom." All shook hands. Harry then proceeded to explain to John and Domingo their situation. John and Domingo listened intently as Harry spoke.  


"My god." Domingo said. "This is incredible."

"I've given some thought about how to handle your presence here." John said. He outline his thoughts as for a cover story for the Marauders. After an hour of discussion, Harry and the Marauders got John's permission to place a familiarity charm over the occupants of the base, except for John and Domingo. All the other residents of the base would act as though they knew the Marauders (under aliases) and remember them having been with Rainbow for several months. John and Domingo would tutor the group in secret for a week or so in the basics of muggle military life, tactics, and weapons. Then they would train with the rest of Rainbow, and possibly go on some missions with them to gain experience.

====================================================================  
The next day Dumbledore, Professor McGonnagall, Sirius, Remus, Moody, Mr. & Mrs. Weasly, the Grangers, and Mrs. Longbottom were all assembled in the Great Hall. The Marauders' absence had been discoverd an hour before and there was much concern. A search of the castle had just been conducted turned up no sign of the Marauders or their belongings.  


"What could have happend to them?" Arthur said. Suddenly an owl flew into the hall and landed near Dumbledore. He untied the package from around its leg and opened the first letter. He read it for several minutes, a look of surprise and concern on his face.

"It seems the Marauders have gone into business for themselves." he said.


	20. Chapter 19: Letters, Reactions, and More...

**Chapter 19: Letters, Reactions, and More Training**

**====================================**

"What do you mean? What does that letter say?" Sirius asked. Dumbledore cleared his throat and began reading.

_Dear Albus,_

_If you are reading this letter, then we can assume that our departure has been discovered. This owl has instructions to place this letter and the attached packet, in your hands once it has been discovered that we are no longer at Hogwart's. Rest assured that we are safe and in good health. And now we are sure that you and the rest of those present are wondering what is happening._

_It is very simple. You have all admitted that we are far more mature, powerful, capable, and wise beyond our years. It is obvious that we are going to be pivotal part of this war, and yet you have continued to resist our wishes to become more active. We refuse to sit back any longer. It will be months before either the Order or the Ministry will be in a position to have restored its forces to the point where they can do any good. During that time, Voldemort and his followers will continue to gather strength and wreck havoc. Someone must remind him, and the wizarding world at large, that the Light will always prevail. We have therefore gone into hiding under the Fidelius Charm. We are living at a secret location from which we will continue our training and launch offensive operations against the Tom Riddle and his followers._

_This location is very secure and has been made unplottable. We have set up protective wards and measures to rival that of Hogwarts, as well as other security measures. Do not waste your time trying to find us. We have also cast a spell on this place that hides all evidence of magic, even to someone as powerful as you, Albus._

_Because we understand your desire to be able to communciate with us, the attache packet contains several special parchments. These are to be given to the following people: yourself, Professor McGonnagall, Remus, Sirius, Mr. & Mrs. Weasly, Bill Weasly, Charlie Weasly, Percy Weasly, Mr. & Mrs. Granger, Mrs. Longbottom, and Mad-Eye. To contact one of us, simply write the name at the top of the parchment, then write the message, and say send. The recipient will hear a special alert when a message is delivered. Only the Marauders and those in this list are able to work these parchments, and then only under their own free will. They are untraceable._

_Once again, please do not waste time trying to find us or resources to try and help us. Concentrate on rebuilding the Order and the Ministry, for we are going to need all the forces that can be mustered to win this war. In the meantime, we will conduct a guerilla war against the enemy in order to disrupt his plans and remind him that though the forces of the Light may have been bloodied, we are not defeated._

_Remember we love and respect you all, but this is our destiny. Take care of one another and no matter what happens, do not give up hope. It is only through the weapons of hope and love that Voldemort will finally be defeated._

_Farewell for now._

_The Marauders_

Silence fell on the hall as those gathered look around at each other, completely stunned. Finally Sirius broke the silence.  


"Are they insane!" Sirius shouted.

"They're only children!" Molly Weasly exclaimed. Everyone else seemed to be expressing the same kind of outrage. The discussion continued for several loud minutes, with everyone demanding that something be done. Finally Dumbledore spoke.

"SILENCE!" he shouted, his aura radiating extreme power. The room became quite. "I quite agree with you all. They are children and it is indeed a dangerous concept. However, it is because that we have forgotten that they are not ordinary children that they have taken this step. In our desire to make sure they were prepared and to keep them safe, we missed the fact that while they may be children according to the number of years they have lived, physically, intellectually, and magically they are all older beyond thier years. And they are correct that neither the Order or the Ministry will be in any position in the near future to take the fight to Lord Voldemort."

"But we can't just let this go, Albus." Arthur said.

"We must. Through their magically abilities, which are far more extensive, by the looks of things, then any of us realized, they have been successful in completely disappearing. All we can do now is rebuild our forces so that we may be able to render aid to them when the time comes." he replied. Everyone looked around. They were clearly not happy about this.

==============================================================================

Domingo Chavez or Ding as everyone called him, was impressed. John had told him all about this remarkable group of teenagers but he really didn't believe it until he saw for himself. First, using their magical powers they had created an entire underground complex under their barracks that they were now using to train, both magically and as muggle soldiers. Then, after only a week of training under the guide of himself and John, they had managed to mastered most of the skills and attitudes necessary for them to fit in easily with the rest of Rainbow. Skills that had taken him more than 10 years to master. Because of their rapid progress, they would tommorrow begin participating in normal training sessions with the rest of the unit.

At the moment he was watching one of their magical combat sessions. He was awed at the amount of power these seven, especially Harry, had at their fingertips. The speed and ferocity with which they moved was unbelievable. He was very glad they were on his side. He hated to think what it would be like to have them as enemies.

===================================================================================

Several hours later, Harry slumped down into his bunk, exhausted, as did the rest of the Marauders. They had been working feverishly the last week. The first order of business had been to create an underground complex under the barracks where they could continue to train their magical abilities, as well as train in the muggle arts of war until they had reached a level where they could fit in with the rest of Rainbow. To everyone's surprise, including the Marauders, this had been accomplished under the extpert tutelege of Ding and John in only a week. The complex also served as their headquarters. One very large room contained a map of England and many magical monitors. In this room the Marauders plotted the locations of all friendly forces and kept track of the large intelligence network they had set up with the help of Ding and John. Several late night forays were conducted to Hogwarts, the Ministry, and other magical sites to plant intelligence gathering spells and items there. Ding and John also trained them in the use of Muggle intelligence devices and concepts.

Tommorrow would be the Marauders first time trianing with the rest of Rainbow. Harry was not worried however. If the evaluations Ding and John had just given them were true, then the Marauders would have no trouble fitting in.


	21. Chapter 20: It Begins

**Chapter 20: It Begins**

**====================================**

The Marauders were awoken at 3am the next morning by the sounding of an alarm. Harry shot up out of bed and made his way to the control room under the barracks, the others following not far behind. He surveyed the map and several of the monitors for a few seconds.

"Looks like Voldemort's forces have regrouped." he said. "We've got two dozen death eaters attacking a village in Northern Scotland. Let's mount up."

With that the Marauders scrambled to thier lockers. Each pulled on a black jumpsuit, similiar to the ones worn by Rainbow in the field, and black combat boots. On the right shoulder of the jumpsuit was a large phoenix, surrounded in fire. A utility belt containing a holster for their wands (they had agreed to carry and use them as much as possible to keep their wandless abilities as secret as possible), several pouches containing some of Fred and Georges Wheezes, and both Muggle and Wizarding first aid kits. Strapped to the left thigh of each was a holster for a .45 caliber automatic pistol (loaded with silver bullets) and to the right thigh a six inch combat knife. A black baclava (military ski-mask) hid their faces from view.

"Everybody ready?" Harry asked. The rest nodded. "Let's go." And with that the Marauders disapparated.

===================================

The Marauders apparated just outside of the village of Loch Oglthorpe. Several dark marks could be seen hovering in the air over the town square. Many of the buildings appeared to be burning and bodies could be seen lying in the streets.

_"Fan out. Standard assualt formation. Remember, we want to keep as quiet as possible. If you can, go for a silent kill."_ Harry said over their mind link.

_"You got it boss."_ Fred replied. The Marauders fanned out and began to make their way towards the town square, where it appeared most of the activity was taking place. Along the way the encountered four Deatheaters, apparently searching for any muggles that may have hidden. Harry crept up behind the one closest to him, his combat knife now in his hand. When he was right behind the Deatheater he reached around his neck with his left hand, covering his mouth. He sank his knife into the kidney area of the Deatheater's back, while at the same timetwisting his neck. The Deatheater let out a muffled groan for a split second and fell to the ground. Harry withdrew his knife from the body and glanced over to where the other three Deatheaters had been. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were standing over their bodies, each withdrawing their own knives.   


"You guys okay?" He asked.  


"Yeah." Ginny replied. "It's just different than I expected." Harry nodded in understanding. He hated the fact they had to kill, especially like this, but there really was no choice. He signaled for Fred, George, and Neville to take the point and make sure there weren't any more Deatheaters nearby.

_"All clear."_ Neville reported. The Maruaders continued to move towards the square. The sight they saw as they neared the edge of the square was like something out of a nightmare. The bodies of dozens of muggles were strewn about. In the very center of the square were about fifteen muggles, mostly women and children, all scared to death. The Deatheaters were surrounding them in a circle. The leader was in the process of using the Cruiciatus curse on a young boy of above seven. His screams echoed throughout the streets.

_"Bastards."_ Fred said over the mind link.  


_"You got that right."_ Harry responded, thinking for a moment.. _"Let's break up their party. Fred, George, and Neville, see if you can circle around and hit them from the East. Ron, Hermonie, and Ginny, get in position and hit them from the West. Don't attack until I signal."_

_"What are you going to do?"_ Ginny asked concerned, already guessing what the answer might be.

_"I'm going to have a little chat with thim."_ Harry replied, a grin appearing on his face.

===================================================

Eric Morden was thoroughly enjoying himself. He had been hand picked by the Dark Lord to lead this raid. His men had quickly succeeded in killing most of the men of the town and were now torturing the few remaining survivors. _Its too bad the Minsitry is in such disarray._ He thought. _I would have enjoyed going up against some Aurors._ His thoughts were interrupted when a voice called out behind him.

"Let them go!" Morden and the majority of the Deatheaters spun around. Walking calmly towards them, bathed in the green light of the Dark Marks currently hovering in the air was a lone figure, dressed in black. Morden could clearly see a wand in the man's hand.

"I don't know who you are stranger, but you are very foolish." Morden said, as sick smile on his face. "You shall die for coming hear." The man laughed.

"I think not. It is you who will pay for what you have done here." Harry said, then shouted, "Phoenix appearus!" A red light shot out of his wand, forming a giant phoenix, which brushed aside the Dark Marks. As soon as the Phoenix symbol appeared, the rest of the Marauders attacked.

The battle was fierce but brief. Before any of the Deatheaters could respond, the Marauders had hurled a dozen cures at them, all of which found their marks. The eight remaining Deatheaters tried to fight back, but after several minutes it was apparent they were outclassed. Several broke and tried to run.

"Oh no you don't!" Ron yelled at the nearest. "Stupefy!" One of the Deatheaters was hit and hurled crashing into the side of a building fifteen feet away. Not far away, Fred and George were stunning two more of the Deatheaters.

"Pertrificus Totalus!" Ginny shouted, dropping another Deatheater, at the same time that Harry hit another. the two remaining Deatheaters then disapparated.

_"Fred, George, Neville, Ron. Get these guys tied up. Ginny, Hermione, check out those people."_ Harry ordered. The Marauders went about their work. After a few minutes all the unconcious Deatheaters were hog tied, their wands snapped in half. Ginny and Hermione had also finished administering first aid to the muggles. Miraculously most were not seriously injured; just in extreme shock. Harry took his message parchment out one of the pouches on his belt and began writing. After a few moments he tapped his wand on the parchment.  


"Send." he ordered.  


=======================================================

Minister of Magic and Headmaster of Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore was startled out of his sleep by a loud chime. It took him a few seconds to realize it was coming from the parchament the Marauders had sent him. Reaching for the parchment on the night table next to him, he scanned the message.

_Albus Dumbledore_

_At approximately 0300, a force of approximately 24 Deatheaters assaulted the town of Loch Oglthorpe. There have been massive muggle casualties and significant damage to the town. The Phoenix Team apparated on scene approximately fifteen minutes ago and took out the Deatheaters. Request Ministry clean up squad to perform memory charms and repair damage. Also Aurors to escort eighteen captured Deatheaters to prison. Hurry._

_Flame._

He quickly put the parchment down and contacted the Aurors. This done, he arranged for a meeting of the Order the next day, and finally scribbled a reply message on the parchment. After it had sent, he laid back down in bed.

_So it begins._ he thought to himself.

===============================================

Harry's parchment emmitted a brief tone.

_Flame_

_Message received. Aurors should be arriving in five minutes._

_Dumbledore._

Harry smiled. He turned to the rest of the Marauders.

_"All right Marauders. The calvary should be here in five minutes. Let's get out of here."_


	22. Chapter 21: Critique, A Bar Brawl, and a...

**Chapter 21: Critique, A Bar Brawl, and a Raid**

Author's Note: The following is a list of the names and ranks that the Marauders have assumed as their cover while with Rainbow. When I use these names, it means they are interacting with members of Rainbow other then John and Ding:

**_Harry Potter – Captain Eric Lansing_**

**_Ron Weasley – Lieutenant David Shannon_**

**_Hermonie Granger – Lieutenant Samantha Rader_**

**_Ginny Weasley – Lieutenant Erica O'Malley_**

**_Fred Weasely – Lieutenant Brian O'Connor   
_**

**_George Weasley – Lieutenant Ian McGregor_**

**_Neville Longbottom – Lieutenant John Clancy_**

Note: Remember the Marauders are in disguise, so Fred and George no longer look alike; that's why they have covers with different last names.  


=========================

"Good work tonight everyone." Harry said, as the Marauders stripped off their gear. They had just apparated back to their barracks a few moments earlier. "Everybody get some sack time. We'll hold an After Action Review at 1100." The others nodded. Harry walked over to Ginny and pulled her into a hug.  


"How are you holding up?" Harry asked.  


"Fine." she replied. "It's funny, I thought I'd be more upset the first time I killed."  


"Probably hasn't sunk in yet." Harry said. "Besides, it helps that they were nothing but a bunch of mosters."  


"Harry, can I stay with you tonight?" Ginny asked. "I don't feel like being alone." Harry smiled.  


"Sure, as long as you promise to behave." he teased. She reached out and swatted the back of his head.  


"In your dreams, Harry." They turned and walked hand-in-hand to Harry's bunk and climbed. He smiled as she snuggled close to him. After a little while she fell asleep.  


As he lay there, trying to fall asleep, Harry couldn't help be beam at how well his team had performed. All of the Marauders had performed well. None had even flinched when the time came to take action. They had taken out a twenty-four Deatheaters in just under 15 minutes, without suffering any injuries. He only wished they could have gotten their sooner. Then maybe more of the Muggles may have survived.

===========================

The next morning Harry and the Marauders gathered in the planning room. John and Ding were also present. Harry had taken the step of ensuring that the mission was recorded for later review and critique. He had invited John and Ding to go over the mission and offer improvements.

They had just finished watching the mission replay. John and Ding looked impressed with the skill that the Marauders had operated.

"Well, you all did very well." John said. "Only one or two things I might suggest, though. First, Harry, that was a bit over dramatic, confronting them in the open like that by yourself, don't you think?" Harry grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah. I probably shouldn't do that too often." he replied.  


"Good. Second, I'm a bit curious as to why you didn't use your silenced pistols to take out the initial four." John asked.

"Two reasons, I guess." Harry said. "First, I didn't want to waste the ammo in case there were some surprises waiting." He said. "Second, I didn't want to take the chance that one of them would let out a scream." John nodded in understanding.

"I see. Well, I understand your concern. But it was still a risk." John replied, then his serious expression disappeared and he smiled. "You sure you guys don't want to join Rainbow officially? I could use some more like you." The Marauders broke into smiles.

"Thanks John." Harry said. Ding cleared his throat.

"Well, now that the work is out of the way, its time for some fun. You see Harry, we have a little tradition around here when a team completes its first mission." Ding said, grinning, his tone then turning serious, "Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Neville Longbottom. You are hereby ordered to present yourselves in the officer's club at 1600 hours this evening. The drinks are on you."  
  


================================== 

Later that evening the Marauders were gathered in the Officer's Club, along with the rest of Rainbow. John had provided a cover story that the team had been dispatched the night before to handle a hostage situation at a school in Ireland. The Marauders were all dressed in the standard Rainbow uniform, each bearing the name and rank of their assumed identities. They had spent the past hour drinking along with the rest of Rainbow. Several toasts had already been offered to them in recognition of a successful mission.

"Looks like we could use another round." Ding said. "Whose up?"

"I believe it is Lieutenant O'Mally's turn to buy." Sergeant George Murphy, a member of Rainbow's Team 3 said. Ginny grinned.

"Alright. I'll be back." Ginny stood up and walked over to the bar. She spoke to the bartender, ordering drinks for the rest of the Rainbow personnel. As she waited for the bill, she glanced around. The Officer's club was quite large, easily fitting about two hundred people inside. Rainbow had taken over a far corner of the room. There were about sixty of them. The rest of the people in the club were members of the SAS.

"Well, look at what we have here. Never thought I'd see a Rainbow slob that looked this good." A slightly drunken voice said from behind her. "What's your name sweetheart?" Ginny turned to see four SAS lieutenants, all obviously drunk. She eyed them coolly.

"The name is Lieutenant O'Malley." She said. The men snickered.

"Oh, very sorry Lieutenant." The man sneered. "And who did you sleep with to get that? Care to give us a little taste?"

Back at the table Harry glanced around towards the bar. He saw Ginny talking to four SAS troopers. Something about their demeanor bothered Harry.

_"Harry. I need some help here. I've got four octopuses that can't seem to take no for an answer."_ Ginny said through the mind link. Harry signaled to the rest of the Marauders and they got up and headed over to the bar.

"Is there a problem here gentlemen?" Harry inquired coming up behind them. The men turned around and looked Harry over.

"No problem Captain, just engaging the lady in friendly conversation."

"Well, if I'm not mistaken, the lady asked you to leave her alone." Ron said. "So why don't you beat it."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Another said. "We didn't realize she was yours. Tell, me is she any good?" Harry, Ron, Fred and George all began to get angry, their fists clenched at their sides.

"Naw. If she had been any good he would have promoted to a Captain." Another said. "If you're ever in the mood for a real woman, let me know. I'm sure I can convince your mum to give you a turn after I'm done with her."

Before anyone else could react, Harry had lashed out at the man, knocking him to the ground. One of his buddies punched Harry in the stomach, doubling him over. With this all hell broke loose as the Marauders began fighting with the four men. Soon more SAS troopers joined the fray.  


Over in the corner John sighed. _I'm getting too old for this_. He thought before standing up.

"Let's get'em Rainbow!" he called. With that the rest of Rainbow entered the fray.

==================================

Six hours later the members of Rainbow and those SAS present at the fight were all sitting in holding cells on the base brig, mending their wounds.

"Well that was fun." Neville said, sitting on a bunk next to Harry.

"Yeah. Remind me to hop up and down in joy as soon as the room stops spinning." Fred replied from a corner. As damaged as the Marauders and the members of Rainbow were, it was nothing compared to the SAS. Several were currently in sickbay with broken bones.

Several minutes later a guard came over to the holding cells and unlocked the doors.

"You're all free to go. Just make sure nothing like this happens again." He said. As they filed out of the brig, one of the SAS four that had initiated the fight came up to Harry and Ginny.

"Captain Lansing, Lieutenant O'Malley?" he asked hesitantly. Harry turned.

"Yes." He replied coolly.

"Sir, I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. I'm afraid I had a little too much to drink. I know it's no excuse but I'm sorry. Same goes for the remarks I made to you Lieutenant." Harry glanced at Ginny. They both grinned.

"Apology accepted, Lieutenant." Harry said, "No hard feelings?" He held his hand out. The SAS trooper shook it.

"No sir." He said. "I'm sure glad you guys are on our side, cause if this is what you guys do to allies, I don't even want to know what you do to the bad guys."

====================================

The reputation of the Marauders increased ten fold after the brawl in the Officer's Club. Though most of the rest of Rainbow had accepted them already, the incident helped cement their place with Rainbow.

Harry and Ginny were currently working out in the Rainbow gym. Harry had just finished swimming several laps in the pool when he looked up to see Ginny approaching the pool.

_God she's beautiful._ He thought to himself. A few seconds later she joined him in the pool. She swam over to him.

"Hi there stranger." He said, pulling her to him.

"Hi. Did you miss me?" she asked, smiling.

"Always." He answered, leaning in to kiss her. The stood in the shallow end of the pool, locked in each other's arms, kissing passionately for several minutes.

"Harry." Ginny breathed as they separated. "We'd better stop. I'd hate to think what would happen if Ron came along and caught us like this."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. Not to mention any of the other members of Rainbow." Harry and Ginny continued to swim for several minutes, each needing the time to cool down.

_"I really wish we could get away for a while."_ Ginny said through the link.

_"Yeah, me too."_ Harry replied. The one downside to this operation was the need to be on alert 24/7. Suddenly Harry's thoughts were interrupted.

_"Harry! You'd better get back to the barracks quick. Looks like there is a Deatheater meeting going on in Surrey. And you'll never guess whose there."_ Ron said through the link.

==================================

A few minutes later the Marauders apparated just outside of the warehouse where the meeting was being held. They slowly made their way to a back entrance moved inside. From behind several large pallets they could see about eight full fledged Deatheaters and what looked like thirty junior Deatheaters. Harry recognized three of the faces as those belonging to Draco Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle.

_"Ok. Spread out. Launch a volley of stunning grenades. Remember, we want prisoners, so use deadly force only if it's necessary." _Harry said through the link. The others nodded and fanned out. When they were in position Harry gave the signal. Several magical grenades, each containing a stunning spell, as well as a few smoke grenades landed among the gathering and exploded. Most of the junior Deatheaters were knocked unconscious by the blast. The Marauders attacked.

"Stupefy!" Harry shouted, his curse hitting the Deatheater closest to him and flinging him across the room. Around him the rest of the Marauders were taking out the remaining Deatheaters. A blur of movement to his left caught his attention and he ducked out of the way as a killing curse flew by. Cursing, he shot an explosive spell towards the pallet where the curse had come from. The pallet exploded, sending a figure several feet through the air and crashing down on the floor. Harry walked over to the figure, which was now groaning and attempting to stand.

"Hello Draco." Harry said, smiling mischievously as Draco's face drained.  


===================================  


Draco Malfoy groaned as a bright light was suddenly shown in his face. He tried to bring his hands up to shield his face and found that he couldn't. Then he remembered. The meeting had been broken up by a group of seven masked wizards who proceeded to take out most of those assembled. He had tried to run and hide, but one of the figures had seen him and attacked him. Then he remembered the voice that had spoken to him.  


"Potter." he grumbled.  


"Thanks my name, Draco. Don't where it out." Harry's voice said. Draco's vision finally cleared and he found himself looking into the face of his arch nemisis. He was in a room, his arms and legs strapped to a chair so that he couldn't move. Looking around he saw the rest of the Marauders standing in the background, along with two men he didn't recognize.  


"Where am I? When my father -" he began.  


"Your father will do nothing." Harry said, disgust in his voice. "You are currently being held at a secret location that no one, not even Dumbledore knows about. And you will stay here until you tell me everything I want to know."  


"Go to hell Potter. I'm not scared of you." Draco replied defiantly. "The Dark Lord will take care of you and your pathetic friends."  


SMACK! The sound of Harry's fist impacting on Draco's face reverbarated throughout the room. Draco let out a gasp of pain.  


"When are you going to learn, Malfoy." Harry spat. "That Voldemort is nothing more than a worthless wizard with delusions of granduer. How many times has he come after me? And he hasn't suceeded yet. But no matter, I am not going to discuss Voldemort's lack of ability to kill me with you." Harry walked over to the table and picked up a small vial. He then walked back over to Draco and held his hand out so the boy could see the vial, and more importantly, the substance that was in it.  


"You do know what this is, right Draco?" Harry said. Draco's eyes widened. "That's right; its Veritiserum. Now, one way or another you are going to tell me everything I want to know."  



	23. Chapter 22: The Daily Prophet, Love Deep...

**Chapter 22: The Daily Prophet, Love Deepens, and The Marauders Strike Again**

**=================================**

Harry flung down the Daily Prophet in anger and cursed. He and Ginny were currently sitting in the eating area of the kitchen in the barracks, eating lunch. A few minutes earlier Hedwig had arrived carry a copy of the paper.  


"Those bastards." Ginny picked up the paper and looked at the front page.

_Harry Potter Dead?_

_By Rita Skeeter_

The disappearance last month of the Boy-Who-Lived, along with several of his friends has many in the wizarding world in a panic.

Ginny stopped reading, shaking her head. They should have suspected that it would only be a matter of time before the press started making its own guesses about what happened to the Marauders. She looked over at Harry who was still shaking in anger. He sat down at a table and began to write furiously. After several minutes he put down his quill and stood up.

"I'll be back shortly." He said to Ginny. Before she could respond Harry had disapparated.

===========================

Rita Skeeter was sitting at her desk in the newsroom of the Daily Prophet, clearly please with herself. Her latest story had helped yesterday's edition of the Daily Prophet become one of the largest selling in a long time.

_I wonder what I should do for a follow up._ She thought. A sudden commotion near the main entrance brought her out of her thoughts. She heard astonished whispers as several Daily Prophet employees gathered around the door.

_Must be that idiot Dumbldore coming to complain to my editor._ She thought. Then, as the crowd of people parted, she saw how wrong she was. Standing in front of her, with a look of pure fury in his face was none other than Harry Potter.

"Hello Rita." Harry said, loudly enough for everyone to hear. "So I'm dead am I?" He threw a piece of parchment down on her desk. "This is my reply to your article. I want it to appear in tomorrow's edition, exactly as it is written. I also want you to write a retraction. You will admit you had no sources for your story and you will apologize to my friends, our families, and me and to the rest of the wizarding world. And if you ever, ever write something like that again, I'll make sure you're career is over permanently." With that he turned and stormed out of the building.

============================

_Harry Potter Denies Reports of his Demise_

Ginny grinned as she read the headline. When Harry had returned the previous day he had been remarkably closed lipped about where he had gone.

"Nice work, Flame." George said. Harry smirked at him.

"Thanks." Harry said.

===============================

The next several weeks were very busy for the Marauders. Voldemort's forces launched several new attacks against the wizarding world, including a rather large raid on the outskirts of London. The Marauders met these moves expertly, and the end result was another fifty of his Deatheater's being captured and an equal number killed.

Meanwhile the wizarding world was abuzz with questions as to the identity the mysterious group was that was taking out Voldemort's forces and left a burning phoenix in the sky. As of yet, no one had thought to connect this group to Harry and his friends.

_Hopefully they won't for a long time._ Harry thought. Then, suddenly, things began to calm down. Deatheater attacks began to drop off, to the point where it had now been over a week since the last one. The Marauders all agreed that Voldemort must be biding his time, trying to come up with a plan to lure them out into the open. In the meantime, Harry decided it was time for them to get some R & R. After talking it over with the rest, along with John and Ding, it was decided that the Marauders would take turns getting away for the weekend. Harry and Ginny would go first, then Ron and Hermione, and finally Fred, George, and Neville.

It was for this reason that Harry and Ginny were now walking in a meadow just outside of the magical community of Twain, Ireland. They had just apparated a moment before and were headed towards a rather large manor. Harry had made reservations at the manor, actually an Inn, for the weekend.

"Harry, its beautiful!" Ginny said as she looked around. "This must be what heaven is like." Harry smiled at her.

"Only if you're there, my love." Harry said. Ginny blushed. They entered the inn and walked to the front desk.

"May I help you sir?" the man behind the counter asked pleasantly.

"I have a reservation. The name's Lansing." He said, giving his cover name. Ginny was suddenly struck with a panicked thought.

_Oh my God. What if he only reserved one room?_ Ginny thought to herself. She knew she loved Harry and wanted to spend her life with him, but she also knew she wasn't ready for their relationship to go down that road yet. True they had been sharing a bed together back at base but they hadn't gone beyond kissing. But she knew if they were to stay in the same room in this place they might end up doing something they weren't ready for.  


"Ah yes, Mr. Lansing. Two rooms, until Sunday, correct?" the man asked.

"Yes." Harry replied. Ginny smiled. She should have known that Harry would get two rooms. He had always been a complete gentleman with her. After they checked in, Harry and Ginny walked upstairs and found their rooms. They were right next to each other.

===============================

Ginny took the small box out of her pocket and set it on the floor near her bed. Casting a magic masking charm over the room, she enlarged her trunk and began putting her stuff away in the dresser.

She was extremely happy. This was the first time since the night at the Burrow last summer that she and Harry had been able to get away alone for any length of time. Ginny smiled. Harry was the perfect boyfriend. He loved her deeply and worried for her safety, but let her make her own decisions. He never tried to push any aspect of their relationship beyond where she felt comfortable. She found herself desperately wishing she were a year or two older so they could get married. She didn't want to wait, but knew Harry would not marry her until she was at least sixteen. She sighed. 

After putting her things away, she walked over to the door that adjoined her and Harry's room and knocked.

"Come on in." Harry's voice called. Ginny opened the door and walked in.

"So, what should we do with the rest of the afternoon?" she asked.

"We're not far from Killarney Castle. I'd really like to go see it." Harry replied. Ginny walked over and took his hand, then led him out of the room.

==================================

Several hours later Harry and Ginny returned to the manor. They decided to change and then go to a quaint little restaurant down the street that the desk clerk had recommended. A half hour later, Harry, dressed in slacks and a blue shirt, knocked on Ginny's door. The sight that greeted him when the door opened nearly took his breath away.

Ginny was wearing a red dress, with thin spaghetti straps on her shoulder. The dress stopped just above her knees, giving Harry a view of her athletic legs. The neckline was cut tastefully low, just low enough to offer a tease of what lay beneath. Her hair was pulled up into a twist and she wore a pair of earrings and a strand of pearls that Harry had given her for her birthday.

"You look beautiful." Harry said softly, pulling her towards him.

"You don't look so bad yourself." Ginny replied, putting her arms around his neck and leaning in against his lips. After a few moments the couple separated.

"We better get going." Harry said. With that the couple walked hand-in-hand towards the elevator.

=================================

Meanwhile, life at Hogwarts was finally settling down. The excitement over the departure of Harry and the others, as well as the events of last few months finally seemed to die down.

Classes were continuing with regularity and the entire castle seemed to settle into a dull routine. All that changed that evening in the Great Hall. As the students sat eating, a loud pop reverberated throughout the hall. Looking around, the teachers and students burst into laughter at the sight that greeted them.

All the Slytherins were now dressed in red and gold clothes, clearly Gryffindor colors. What's more, the boys were wearing women's clothing and the girls were wearing men's clothing. Hanging above the table in neon green lights was the words GO GRYFFINDOR! and underneath the words LOVE FLAME, WISE, SLY, PRECIOUS, PAWS, MANE AND FANGS.


	24. Chapter 23: Voldemort's Fury and A Visit...

**Chapter 23: Voldemort's Fury and a Visit to the Burrow**

**=================================**

Lord Voldemort was furious. For the last two months his every plan had been twarted by a shadowy group of wizards who seemed to appear from the shadows and disappear again. He was currently glaring at a gathering of his inner circle, all of who were kneeling before him, trembling.  


"My lord," Lucious Malfoy said. "We have tried everything we know. We cannot find out who they are or where they are."

"Fools! I am surrounded by incompetent fools!" he raged at the assembly of Deatheaters before him. "Crucio!" he shouted at the nearest Deatheater, who immediately fell to the ground and began to writhe in pain. He kept him under the curse for several minutes before lifting it. Breathing heavily, the Deatheater strugged back to a kneeling position.  


"Now." Voldemort said. "Find out who they are! Or I shall have to take more drastic measures to punish you."  


=================================

"You guys ready?" Harry asked. Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Hermonie, and Neville had just finished shrinking their trunks. As the number of Deatheater attacks had continued to drop, the group decided that now would be a good time to visit their families for a day or two. Harry had linked the situation map in their planning room to their message parchments, so that if anything happened they would be immediately alerted. Hermione's parents and Neville's grandmother were already at the Burrow, along with Sirius, Remus, Professor McGonnagal, Mad-Eye Moody, and Professor Dumbledore.

"Yeah mate. We're ready." Ron replied. Harry turned to John Clark.

"We should be back in two days. I've tied our situation map into our message parchment, so if anything happens, we'll know." Harry said. He then handed John a blank parchment. "This is a message parchment. Its been modified so that you can use it. If anything comes up that you need help with, just write my name at the top, then the message and write send." John Clark couldn't help but smile. Even though these youngsters were far more powerful then the entire Rainbow team and were technically not under his command, the Marauders had shown him remarkable deference, to the point of making him and Ding almost honorary Marauders. Likewise, John felt a growing attachment to these remarkable young people.

"Thanks for letting me know. Standard cover story?" He question. They had agreed that should the Marauders need to leave base for an extended period of time, John and Ding would create the necessary paper trail showing that the Marauders' alter egos had been dispatched consult on anti-terrorism programs that other cities or countries were putting together. It had a grain of truth to it: Rainbow had been conducting a lot of those consultations lately.

===============================

"Hello?! Anybody home?!" Ron yelled as he and the rest of the Marauders walked into the front door of the Burrow, having just apparated in the front yard. They were amazed at the changes the Burrow had undergone. Since Arthur Weasley's election as the Assistant Minister of Magic, the Weasley family had received a substantial increase in funds, some of which had been put to use expanding on the Burrow. It was now twice as large as Harry remembered it. They walked through the front hall, into the living room.

"SURPRISE!" A number of voices shouted as they entered the darkened room, surprising the group. The room was illuminated to reveal their families. A large banner was suspended against the wall reading WELCOME HOME MARAUDERS!

"What's this all about?" Harry asked.

"It's a combination welcome home party and a job well done party." Sirius said, launching himself at his godson and pulling him into a fierce hug. "You had us all bloody worried for a while there." Harry grinned. Soon everyone, including Moody had made their way over to the group and was exchanging hugs and handshakes with them.

"Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, George and Neville, I believe we owe you all an apology." Dumbledore stated after the greetings were finished. The Marauders looked at him, stunned.

"What do you mean Professor?" Hermione asked.

"Hermione, you, Harry, and the rest of the Marauders were correct with what you said in your letter. We did indeed underestimate your abilities and your maturity." Dumbledore answered. The others gathered nodded their agreement.  


"Thank you all." Harry said. "We'd like to apologize as well for running out like we did. But it was something we just had to do."

"We understand Harry." Arthur Weasley said. "And we're very proud of what you seven have accomplished." The Marauders beamed.

===============================

The next morning Harry awoke early the next morning, feeling rather refreshed. It was good to be back home in the Burrow. Next to him Ginny began to stir. The two teens had started sharing the same bed several weeks ago, though nothing happened beyond kissing and cuddling. Harry smiled. He was glad that Mr. & Mrs. Weasley didn't object too strongly to the news. The truth was, after all they had seen the last six months, it was the only way the two could get a decent nights sleep. The same was true for Ron and Hermonie. Carefully, so as not to disturb Ginny, Harry got out of bed and went to the door. Once there he opened it gently and walked into the hall, closing the door behind him.

"Morning Harry." Sirius greeted as Harry reached the bottom of the stairs and entered the living room.

"Good morning." Harry replied. He took a seat next to the fireplace.

"How are you guys handling everything, Harry? I mean really." Sirius asked. Harry sighed. He had known this conversation would come eventually.

"I won't lie to you Sirius. It's been rough. Especially the first time we had to…well, deliberately kill someone." Harry said. "But we got over that pretty quickly. It's kind of hard not too when you see the bastards do their handy work on some poor Muggle or a wizard that they don't like."

"How many have you…" Sirius started to ask, but was stopped with a wave of Harry's hand.

"I don't keep count. None of us do." Harry said. "But I know one thing. I feel no guilt over it. Those people were threatening innocent lives. They got what they deserve."

"How about the rest of the team? How are they handling it?" Sirius asked.

"About the same as me. I'll tell you Sirius, they are the greatest team I could ask for. I'd do anything for them." Harry said.

"We feel the same, mate." Fred said. Harry turned to see the rest of the Marauders standing at the bottom of the stairs.

============================

"Harry, I was wondering if I could speak to you and the Marauders for a moment?" Professor Dumbledore asked later that day. Harry and the rest walked over to where their former headmaster was standing.

"Yes Albus?" Harry asked.

"As you are aware, the Order has managed to rebuild most of its strength back, as has the Ministry. We feel that we are finally in a position to begin significant operations against Voldemort and his forces. Thanks to what you have done the last few months it appears that we may be able to win this war." Dumbledore said. "However, you have, technically, been acting as vigilantes. As Minister of Magic, I cannot ignore this." The Marauders exchanged looks

"Albus…" Harry started to say but was cut off.

"Therefore, in accordance with the Ministry of Magic rules governing military emergencies, I hereby commission Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Neville Longbottom as Aurors of the Ministry of Magic. Further, I hereby direct the aforementioned wizards and witches to conduct offensive special operations against Lord Voldemort and his supporters. They are granted special dispensation to plan and conduct these operations as they see fit and will act independently of the rest of the Ministry." Dumbledore said in an official voice. "Congratulations to you all." Harry and the rest of the Marauders broke into smiles.


	25. Chapter 24: Voldemort's New Allies, Raid...

Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven

**Chapter 24: Voldemort's New Allies, Raid on Muggle London, and Rainbow Joins the Fight  
  
**===================  
_Lord Voldemort sat on his throne in his secret headquarters in the mountains. The door to the throne room opened and Lucius Malfoy, dressed in Deatheater garb, came in. Walking up to the throne, he knelt before his master._

_"My lord, they are here." Malfoy said._

_"Excellent." Voldemort hissed. "Show them in." Malfoy nodded, then looked like he wanted to say something. "What is it, Lucius?"_

_"My Lord, I do not question your plans, but why have you asked for these muggles to be brought here?" he asked. Voldemort smiled._

_"Because Lucius, these muggles are among the most despicable there are and a pariahs in their world. They are extremely vicious. I can use their talents. At least, that is, until I have taken over the world. Now show them in." Malfoy turned and hurried out of the room. A moment later he led a group of forty muggles into the room. They were an assort lot, some dressed in rather expensive clothes, others in street clothes._

_"Greetings, my friends." Voldemort said._

_"Why have you brought us here?" one of the men demanded. "Who are you!"_

_"I am Lord Voldemort, muggle." Voldemort responded. "And you need to learn some manners. CRUCIO!" The man fell to the ground, screaming and convulsing in pain. The others gasped and paled in fear. After a few moments, Voldemort broke the curse._

_"What are you?" another of the men whispered in amazement._

_"I am a wizard, muggle." Voldemort respond, "And as to why I have brought you all here, I have proposition I would like to discuss with you." Voldemort continued for several minutes, explaining who he was, conveniently leaving out his hatred of muggles, and plans for world domination. He then laid out what he wanted from them, as well as what they would gain by working for him. These enticements were all lies of course; as he had no intention of letting any of them live once he had taken over the world. Having just seen what Voldemort was capable of doing, they really had no choice. After a few moments, they agreed._

*****

Harrry awoke with a start, sweating. He had a dream where he saw Voldemort's meeting with the muggle terrorists. It was a complete surprise. Voldemort had always had such a great hatred for muggles that Harry never suspected that Voldemort would even think of allying himself with muggles of any sort.

"What's wrong?" Ginny asked, waking up next to him. Harry told her about the dream.

"You better message Dumbledore." Ginny said. Harry got out of bed and walked over to the desk. He picked up his message parchment and began writing. A few minutes later, he put the parchment down and returned to bed. Ginny snuggled close to him. "Well, Mr. Potter, since you woke me up, what should we ever do?" Harry grinned.

"I can think of a few things." He said.

******

Albus Dumbledore was working late in his office when Harry's message reached him. As he read the message, he arched an eyebrow. It was very interesting news, and most disturbing. Up until now, Voldemort's biggest weakness was his inability to put aside his prejudices and hatred. Now it appeared he was doing so, if even on only a limited scale.

Dumbledore immediately sent for the Head of the Auror Division to inform him of this new development. Once he was done with the Head of the Auror Division, Dumbledore contacted the members of the Order for a meeting. Twenty minutes later, the entire Order was assembled at Hogwarts.

"Albus, what's wrong?" Molly Weasley asked. "Why have you called a meeting so late?"

"I have just received a very disturbing report from Harry." He said. Dumbledore went on to explain the content of the message. Gasps were heard around the table.

"Voldemort is allying himself with muggles?" Bill Weasley asked incredulously.

"Yes." Dumbledore replied. "And not just any muggles. From Harry's description, they would appear to be leaders of some of the most vicious criminal and terrorist elements in the muggle world."

"But what good does being allied with them due Voldemort?" Shacklebolt asked. "After all, they are muggles. What can they do?"

"Don't underestimate the amount of trouble they can cause." Arthur said. "After all, we know that Harry and the others have used muggle weapons rather successfully against Voldemort's troops. And they could weaken the muggle law enforcement agencies, allowing Voldemort a much more free reign."

"Arthur is correct." Dumbledore said. "We must not underestimate them."

*****

Two weeks later, Harry was beginning to wonder what Voldemort and his new allies were planning. There had been no new attacks in the last two weeks and that worried him. Despite intensive investigation by the Ministry, the Order and Harry's own intelligence networks, no new information had been developed. The only thing they could do was sit and wait. In the meantime, the Marauders continued exercising their skills, both in their training complex and in the field with Rainbow.

One upside to the quiet was the Harry and Ginny were able to spend more quality time together. Several times during the past two weeks they, along with Hermione and Ron, had gone into Muggle London, visiting some of the hot spots of the city. Their favorite place was a club called the Blue Rose.

Harry was currently sitting in the base cafeteria, enjoying a cup of coffee and conversation with John. Harry and he had become quite good friends in the time that the Marauders were at the base, and often spent hours discussing their combat experiences, as well as other topics. Currently they were discussing John's offer to train the Marauders as parachutists.

"I'm intrigued." Harry said. "But I just don't see how it will help us. I mean, I can't honestly see it coming in handy against Voldemort." John was about to reply when his beeper went off. Looking at the message, he jumped up out of his seat.

"I'm sorry Harry, I'm going to have to go." He said hurriedly, and then left.

*****

Eight-year-old Ashley Walden was scared. She had come to the East London Mall with her parents on a shopping trip and somehow managed to get separated from them. She looked around frantically, but could not find them. Finally her eyes spotted a policeman standing outside a store a few doors down. She hurried over.

"Can you help me?" she asked. The policeman smiled at the girl.

"Of course." He replied. "What can I do to help?" Ashley began to answer when there were several screams followed by the sound of gunfire. "Get down!" the policeman yelled, pushing the little girl to the ground, then followed his own advice. Looking up, he saw about a dozen men armed with automatic weapons firing into the crowded mall. He glanced around wildly, trying to figure out how the hell they had gotten there. It was like they appeared out of nowhere. Several loud popping noises caused him to turn around. He gasped as he saw eight black-cloaked figures standing there. One of them spotted him and the little girl and lifted his wand.

"Crucio!" the figure yelled.

*****

Twenty minutes later, the entire Rainbow team was on scene at the East London Mall. London police had created a cordon around the mall. All attempts to contact whoever had attack the mall had failed. Intelligence gathered from the few civilians who managed to escape indicated that the attacking for was large and well armed. Worse, they appeared to have no compunction about killing. John conferred with the rest of Rainbow, as well as the senior police officials on scene. All agreed that while it would be preferable to wait and develop a methodical plan, there wasn't much time. Finally it was decided that Rainbow would have to storm the mall.

John divided his force into four groups, each made up of two teams of ten. Each group would enter from a different side of the mall, sweeping inward. Members of Scotland Yard's Tactical Response Force, a small group of police trained along the SWAT model, would provide backup.

Ten minutes later, John moved with the rest of Team-1 and Team-2 towards the mall. He was slightly surprised that they had not as of yet taken any fire. Moving quickly, the made their way to the assigned entry point. Moving in pairs, they entered the building. Once inside, John's eyes widened. There was significant damage to this part of the mall; bullet holes and spent shell casings were everywhere. So were the bodies of dozens of people. But there was no sign of the attackers. Slowly and carefully, they began moving further inside, their weapons sweeping in every direction. Then John's radio crackled to life.

"This is Team 5, we're under heavy attack! We need backup-" a voice began before cutting out. John pressed the button on his radio.

"Team-5, this is Six. What's your status?" he said. "Come in Team-5." He was greeted with static. Turning to Chavez, he said, "Let's get moving Ding."

*****

Meanwhile, back at Rainbow's base, Harry decided to take a trip to the workout room. He found that working out allowed him to clear his mind and think more clearly about things. He was in the middle of his routine when Ginny's voice came over the link.

_"Harry! Get back to the Situation Room. We've got trouble."_ She said. Five minutes later Harry walked into the Situation Room to find the rest of the Marauders already gathered and in their gear.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Approximately thirty minutes ago there was a terrorist attack on the East London Mall." Ginny explained. "A large force of terrorists took control of the facility."

"So that's where John went." Harry said. Ginny nodded.

"Ten minutes ago Rainbow apparently stormed the mall. Things seemed to be going ok, and then contact was lost with them. Around the same time, our magical detectors started going off. A large group of Deatheaters were involved in an attack in East London." Ginny said, letting the implication set in.

"Shit." Harry replied. "Okay, let's go." He moved over to his locker and quickly put on his gear. Then they disapparted.

*****

The Marauders apparated inside the East London Mall, not far from where John and Teams 1 and 2 had entered. Harry's stomach dropped as he saw the bodies of the innocent people who had so far been killed. They could hear the sounds of battle at the far end of the mall. Glancing at each other, the Marauders immediately spread out into their normal formation and began making their way towards the sounds. They had gone only a few feet with several muggles armed with automatic weapons popped up and began firing. Cursing, Harry dived to the ground, taking cover. He then began to return fire, utilizing his MP-9 as well as several stunning spells. Around him, the rest of the Maruaders were doing the same.

Movement to his left drew his attention and he spotted two Deatheaters making their way towards them. He watches as they took position next to the muggle terrorists. Dodging a exploding hex, Harry fired a slashing curse at one of them, which caught the Deatheater in the chest, sending him to the grounds screaming. Within minutes the Marauders had taken out their attackers and began making their way further into the mall.

At several points along the way they were engaged by small groups of muggle terrorists and Deatheaters, clearly waiting for rescue forces that may have been sent in to aid Rainbow. Harry's heart sank as they discovered the bodies of several black-clad Rainbow troopers. Finally the group made its way towards the central are of the mall. The sight that greeted them was horrible. The Rainbow troopers were surrounded on all sides by a large number of Deatheaters and terrorists. From the bodies strewn around it was clear that Rainbow was inflicting damage on the enemy. Several bodies of Deatheaters appeared to have gunshot wounds; this, along with a small wound on Neville's leg clearly indicated that muggle bullets could go through normal magical shields. Signaling the others, Harry rushed forward into the melee.

*****

John cursed as another of his men went down. He was still unsure of exactly what the hell was happening, but he was sure that he and his men had become involved in the magical war that Harry and the others had long told him about. What he couldn't figure out was why these Deatheaters were working with muggle terrorists. However, there was no time for such thoughts now. Rainbow was in dire straights. They were surrounded and half his men were either dead or wounded, and they were running short of ammunition. Unless help arrived soon, they would be wiped out.

_"At least we're taking some of the bastards with us."_ He thought as he fired a three round burst and watched another bad guy fall.

"John! Look, three o'clock!" Ding shouted. John turned and broke into a grin. Seven black-clad figures were moving towards the battle, blasting terrorist and Deatheater alike in their path. It could only be the Marauders.

*****

"Slasio!" Harry shouted, sending a slashing curse into a Deatheater not five feet in front of him. He and the Marauders were fighting their way through the enemy to reach Rainbow. A sharp sting told Harry he'd been hit in his right arm. Drawing is .45 from with his left; he fired three shots at the muggle who had fired at him. He glanced at his arm; it was only a minor wound. Taking cover behind a large concrete flowerpot, he saw he was only feet from John Clark. Glancing around, he made a run for John's position.

"Miss us?" he asked grinning as he slid onto the ground by John. Off to their left, Harry watched as Hermione and Ron dropped several more of the enemy with well aimed exploding hexes.

"Are you kidding?" John asked, grinning. "I didn't think Ginny would kill me I'd kiss you." The arrival of the Marauders soon turned the tide of the battle. The members of Rainbow were filled with renewed energy and began decimating the terrorists, while the Marauders concentrated on the Deatheaters.

*****

Ten minutes later, the battle was over. The few terrorists who surrendered were now being guarded by Rainbow troopers. Large amounts of police and medical teams had begun entering the mall and that was cause for concern, at least from Harry's perspective. Obviously the police and medical personnel would have to be oblivated, along with any civilian survivors they might find. But he didn't want Rainbow included. Taking his message parchment out he quickly scribbled a note to Dumbledore. Minutes later, large numbers of Aurors and Oblivators began apparating in, accompanied by Dumbledore.

"Harry." Dumbledore said as he approached.

"Minister." Harry acknowledged. "Sir, we need to take care of all these people. But I don't want any of the commandos oblivated; not yet. I need to talk to you first about something." Dumbledore looked at him for a moment, then nodded.

"Agreed." Dumbledore said, motioning the Ministry personnel. Harry ran over to John.

"John, get your people together and go over by the rest of my team. Whatever you do, don't interfer with Ministry personnel." Harry said. John looked around and watched as several people had their memories modified. He paled slightly, and then nodded. Harry walked back over to Dumbledore and pulled him over to a corner.

"Minister, I think its time you found out where we've been hiding out." Harry said, going on to explain their relationship with Rainbow. Dumbledore's eyes widened slightly as he heard the story, particularly the information the Moody had known all along. "I don't want them obliviated."

"Harry, you know as I know we have no choice." Dumbledore replied. "Perhaps we can leave Mr. Clark and Mr. Chavez alone, but the others-"

"No." Harry said forcefully. "Let me put it another way. They will NOT be touched. I need them."

"What are you talking about?" Dumbledore asked. Harry went on to explain an idea that had been forming in his mind since he learned of Voldemort's alliance with the terrorists. Once again Dumbledore was surprised. Finally, he nodded. "Alright, if Rainbow agrees, I will approve it." Harry called over to John. A moment later he had walked over to where Harry and Dumbledore were standing.

"John, I'd like to introduce you to Albus Dumbledore, the Minister of Magic." Harry said. "Minister, this is John Clark, leader of Rainbow." John and Dumbledore shook hands.

"Minister, it's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Moody and the Marauders of course." John said.

"John, we have a bit of a problem." Harry said. "Standard procedure for the Ministry is to obliviate the memory of anyone who witnesses magic. Obviously this includes any surviving civilians, the police, and medical teams. It would also include Rainbow." John tensed slightly. He glanced over to his men. His face betrayed his feelings. "Relax, John. I've talked to the Minister and gotten him to agree to leave Rainbow alone…for now."

"For now?" John asked.

"Yes, Mr. Clark." Dumbledore said. "A permanent decision will be made based on your reaction a proposal Harry has brought to my attention." John looked at Harry.

"John, it's clear by now that Voldemort is allied with muggles. And I think it's highly likely that this is on the beginning. You're probably going to end up in a few more situations like today." Harry said. "So I'd like to propose that we formally join forces." Harry went on to more fully explain his idea. A number of experienced Order and Auror members would be assigned to Rainbow and divided up among the various teams. They would be trained in muggle combat. By doing so, it would eliminate the need to replace the troops lost in the battle today, provide Rainbow with more magical support than just the Marauders would be able to provide, and keep the Rainbow teams about the same size that its operational doctrine called for. The Marauders would also "officially" be assigned to Rainbow, though in reality they would continue to have the same autonomy they had been enjoying. Harry and John would jointly command the organization.

"I'd have to run it by the rest of my people." John said. "After all, Rainbow is a volunteer outfit. But I think they would go for it."

"Unfortunately we're going to have to move your people to a more secure location." Harry said. "I don't think it's a good idea for us to stay where we are. Problem is, I don't know where else would be secure enough, except Hogwarts. And I'd prefer not to go there, since it would be hard to keep our identities secret for long."

"Perhaps I can solve that problem." Dumbledore spoke up. "I have a friend in the British Defense Ministry. During the Cold War, a number of secret bunkers were built in England to allow the government to survive in the event of a nuclear war. Even to this day, only a few outside the upper levels of the government know where they are. I think, between the muggle security measures that are already in place at these sites, along with magical protections, one of these complexes might be just what you need."

*****

An hour later, John, Ding, the Marauders and Dumbledore were standing at the front of Rainbow's Briefing Room. Those members of Rainbow not seriously wounded from the battle were seated in front of them, talking amongst themselves, trying to make sense of the events of the last two hours.

"Alright people, settle down." John said, finally speaking. "I'm sure you're all wondering what the hell happened this afternoon. That's why I've called this meeting." He nodded to Harry and the Marauders, still disguised as the Rainbow troopers everyone knew them on. They stepped forward and let the disguise drop. Gasps arose from most of the Rainbow members. John went on to explain about the existence of magic, the identities of the Marauders, and the war currently going on in the wizarding world.

"Sir, is this for real?" asked one of them, still not quite believing what he heard. Harry and the others were prepared for this skepticism. Harry and Ginny stepped forward, drawing their wands. They took up traditional dueling positions and began to duel. Spells flew back and forth for several minutes, both of the Marauders allowing several of them to hit in order to demonstrate what happens. Finally the duel ended. Silence filled the room. Finally, another of the Rainbow personnel, who Harry recognized as Lieutenant Samantha O'Neill, spoke up.

"Why are you telling us this sir?" she asked. John went on to explain Harry's proposal. "But if they can do all that, and this Voldemort is so powerful, why do they want our help?" Harry stepped forward to answer.

"Simple. True we can do many things that you cannot. But we are not invincible. Bullets can hurt us, as is evident by the number of Deatheaters you were able to kill today. Voldemort has temporarily set aside his hatred of muggles and allied himself with the worse of your race. As you can see from the events of today, this is deadly combination. Our resources are small and used to primarily dealing with wizards; in order to beat Voldemort and his allies, we must expand our base of supporters as well. Finally, because if Voldemort wins and beats the Ministry, no one will be safe."

*****

Harry paced back and forth. He, Dumbledore, and the rest of the Marauders were in John's office, having left the briefing room twenty minutes earlier to allow Rainbow to freely discuss matters and their decision to Harry's proposal.

"Calm down mate, you're starting to make _me_ nervous." Ron said.

"Yeah, Harry. It's not going to make anything go faster." George said. Harry sighed and stopped. He knew they were right. A moment later the door opened and John entered.

"They've made a decision." He said. Dumbledore and the Marauders followed him out of the office and back to the briefing room. The members of Rainbow stood silently. Finally John spoke up.

"You've got yourself a deal." He said. The room then erupted into cheers.


	26. Chapter 25: A New Headquarters, the Fall...

Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven

**Chapter 25:  A New Headquarters, the Fall of Beauxbatons, and Discovery**

Two weeks after the raid at the East London Mall, the Marauders and Rainbow had re-located to its new home.  The new base and headquarters was located in a rather large Cold War-era command and control facility located deep under the Scottish Highlands known as Site R.  John had been correct; the security precautions already in place at the facility were very effective and elaborate.  To this the Marauders added numerous magical protections, including a specially modified Fidelius Charm.  They also used their powers to rearrange portions of the facility to better fit the needs of the unit, and expanded the facility.  By the time they were done, it had more than enough room to fit the entire Rainbow unit, plus their families, as well as the new recruits that would be arriving today from the Ministry.

Harry and Ding were waiting near in the large embarkation point near the surface.  It was here that all the new recruits from the Ministry would be arriving.  According to the last message from Dumbledore, approximately thirty-five Aurors, Hit Wizards, Unspeakables and members of the Order of Phoenix would be arriving any minute.  Among them were three individuals Harry wanted to greet personally.  Harry looked at his watch.  The specialized portkey that would bring the recruits to the base was due to activate any second.  A moment later there was a flash of light and a rushing sound and thirty-five figures appeared.

"Welcome to Site R." Harry said, examining the faces before him.  "As I am sure you have already been informed, from this moment on you will live, train, and work from here.  This complex is protected by a specialized Fidelius Charm that prevents anyone who enters from divulging the location of the facility or anything about what goes on here.  Whatever your previous associations were, make no mistake about it, you take orders from myself, Ding, and the commander of Rainbow, John Clark.  If anyone has a problem with this, speak up now.  You're memory will be modified and you will be sent back."  Several of the people gathered looked at one another but no one spoke up.

"Good." Harry said.  "This is Domingo Chavez.  He will be in charge of assigning you to the various Rainbow teams, as well as quarters.  Once you received your assignments, feel free to explore the facility; but be sure to get to bed early.  Tomorrow you begin training.  And I promise it will not be easy."  Harry then turned them over to Ding.

Fifteen minutes later, all had received their assignments.  Harry stood against the back wall as three wizards made their way over to him.

"Sirius, it's good to see you." He said, pushing himself off the wall and engulfing his godfather in a brief hug.  Then he turned to the two redheaded wizards that were also there.  "Bill, Charlie.  Good to have you onboard."  Bill and Charlie Weasley both smiled at him.

"It's good to be here." Bill said.  "After all, can't let you, Ron, Ginny and the twins have all the fun."  Harry grinned.

"Yeah, besides, somebody needs to chaperone you and Ginny." Charlie said with a twinkle of mischief in his eyes.  Harry laughed; he knew Charlie was just teasing him.  The entire Weasley clan had approved of his and Ginny's relationship.  Besides, its not like anyone could have done anything to them anyway.

"I'll keep that in mind." Harry said.

******

The next six weeks were busy for the Marauders.  Voldemort and his forces launched about a dozen attacks throughout England in that time, though none came close to the level of the East London Mall raid.  In addition to these missions, the Marauders also took an active part in the training of the newly integrated Rainbow teams.

So far everything seemed to be moving along well.  The new magical members of Rainbow were quickly assimilated into the unit and were progressing in their training exceptionally fast.  Team-1 led by Ding and now including Sirius, Bill Weasley and Charlie Weasley, was perhaps the best team of all of them, with the exception of the Marauders.  But the other teams were almost as good.

The little down time that the Marauders had was either spent catching up with Sirius and the elder Weasleys, working out, or in the case of Ron and Hermione and Harry and Ginny, quietly in their quarters.  Tonight Harry was sitting in the base cafeteria, having a cup of coffee with Sirius.

"I still can't get over how good these Rainbow chaps are." Sirius said.  He and Harry had been discussing the training and muggle fighting techniques.  "I never realized the muggles had such ingenious methods for fighting one another."  Harry nodded.

"I know what you mean." Harry said.  "Sometimes I wonder why we didn't approach them sooner."

"I've wondered the same thing." Sirius said.  "What amazes me more though is how quickly we've picked up their methods."  Harry nodded.

"Yeah, that too." Harry said.  "But I got to warn you Sirius, killing someone using muggle methods can be a lot more…messy."

"I know." Sirius said.  Harry had long ago told Sirius about some of the Marauders' experiences.  He was still amazed that they had been able to adjust so well given what they had seen and done.  This was not say it didn't have an effect on them.  Sirius knew for a fact that they had had some uneasiness.  Luckily John and Ding were there to help them through it.  Turning to a happier subject, Sirius asked "How are things with you and Ginny?"

"Good.  I'm telling you Sirius, I've never been happier in my life."  Harry said.  "She's everything to me."

"I know you've been sharing a bed, does that mean you and Ginny-" Sirius began.  Harry blushed slightly.

"No.  Not yet." Harry replied.  "Neither one of us is ready for that, at least not yet."

"Okay." Sirius said.  "Your mother would kill me for what I'm about to say, but you know Harry, just because you aren't sleeping together doesn't mean there aren't other things you can do together."  Harry laughed.

"Promise you'll never speak about this again." He said.  "It's way to weird.  Besides, who says we haven't been…experimenting?"  Sirius grinned.

"Ah, our little Harry is growing up." He said teasingly.

*****

"How's Sirius holding up?" Ginny asked as Harry walked into their quarters.  Harry went over to her and pulled her into an embrace, planting a small kiss on her lips.

"Good.  He seems to be adjusting to everything rather well." Harry said.  "That includes our arrangement."  Ginny blushed slightly.

"That's good." She said.  "I know he didn't say much about it when we visited the Burrow, but I was afraid once he got her he'd have a problem."

"Relax, sweetheart." Harry said, laughing.  "He's fine with it.  In fact, he started to give me advice on things we could do even though we weren't having sex yet."

"He didn't!" Ginny said.

"Yep.  You should have seen his face when I told him we already had it covered.  It was priceless." Harry said.  "I'll tell you what I was really surprised at though; that the rest of your family hasn't tried to hex me into oblivion."

"Well, Ron really can't talk; considering that he and Hermione are doing the same thing." Ginny said.  "And the twins are part of our team; not to mention the fact that they've got their own love lives to worry about." Fred and George had begun seeing the twin daughters of Captain Jeff Stucker, the leader of Team-5.  "And of course Bill and Charlie have too much respect for you to do anything.  Plus, you make me happy; and none of them want to ruin that."

"Well, I'm glad to hear I make you happy." Harry said.  "I love you Ginny."

"I love you to Harry." Ginny replied, kissing him.  When they broke apart, Ginny smiled at him.  "You know, neither one of us has watch tonight." Her eyes twinkled mischievously.  Harry grinned.

"What did you have in mind, Ms. Weasley?"

*****

The next day, Rainbow staged its first unit wide war game since the addition of the witches and wizards from the Ministry.  The war game had two parts.  First, each team made a mock assault against the Marauders, who were playing the enemy or Red Team.  Given their power and skill, none of the teams were able to beat them, but they did perform exceptionally well.  They would definitely be a match for almost any of Voldemort's forces.

The second part of the war game consisted of Rainbow dividing into two forces.  The larger force would portray the Red team.  The other force, the Blue Team, then had to alternate attacking and defending against this superior force.  This portion of the war game was based on John's knowledge of the U.S. Army's National Training Center exercise.  The thinking was that Rainbow would almost always be going up against a numerically superior force; therefore all its members needed to be prepared.

The war games dragged on for nearly a week.  Harry and John were very impressed with the progress each team had made.  They would put them against any fighting force in the world.

In addition to the war games, the Marauders also began modifying Rainbow's helicopters so that they could operate in a magical environment.  This included making modification to the flight gear worn by the pilots.  Unfortunately it would take another couple of days before the modifications would be complete.

*****

Harry and Ginny were sitting in the cafeteria, enjoying dinner together.  The rest of the Maruaders were off working on the modifications to the helicopters.  About halfway through their meal, the base alarm klaxons began to sound.  Exchanging looks they immediately put their forks down and rushed to the base operations center.

When they arrived, John and Ding were already there.

"What's the situation?" Harry asked as he approached the situation map where John and Ding were standing.  John looked up.

"Looks like Voldemort is feeling feisty." John said, indicating to the map.  "His forces are making a full-scale attack in France.  A school called Beauxbatons."  Harry and Ginny's eyes widened.  Behind them, the Marauders came into the room and examined the map.

"Looks like Snake-face is starting to get a clue about tactics." Ron said.  "But he's not good enough yet.  He's left a relatively small force to cover his rear."

"Do the French have Aurors?" Ding asked.  Harry nodded.

"Yeah.  But I wouldn't want to leave the safety of the students of that school to the French Ministry." Hermione replied.

"Why not?" John asked.

"Because, their Ministry is exactly like the rest of the government.  Remember what happened when Hitler invaded in the forties?" Harry said.

"What's the plan?" Ginny asked Harry.

"Rainbow uses those special portkeys and takes up position around the school to support the Aurors and Professors that are defending the school.  There's no way we'll be able to defeat the force that Voldemort has there; at least not without air support and the choppers aren't ready yet.  The best we can hope for is to hold them off long enough to evacuate the school." Harry said.  "The Marauders will transport behind Voldemort's forces and hit them from the rear.  Maybe we can draw some of his forces away from the school."

"Okay, let's get moving." John said.

*****

Madame Maxine cursed.  She was positioned, along with most of her professors and a small contingent of French Aurors, were fighting to hold off Voldemort's forces while her students were evacuated.  The attack had come as a complete surprise; especially when they realized that aside from Death Eaters, Vampires, and Trolls, the attacking force also included muggle mercenaries.  She silently prayed that the Order of the Phoenix had heard of the attack and would come to reinforce them.  A muffled scream drew her out of her thoughts.  She turned to see the school's Herbology professor, Andre Deveraux, get hit with a killing curse.  He promptly dropped to the ground.  She frowned.  The battle was not going well and it would only be a matter of time before they were overrun.

Suddenly there was a rushing sound and several flashes of light.  Her eyes widened as about seventy black clad figures appeared.  One of the French Aurors turned and fired a stunning curse at one of them.  The lead figure ducked and fired another stunning curse back, which hit the Auror.  Cursing, the figured called out.

"Hold your fire!  We're here to help!" Sirius shouted.  Madame Maxine immediately recognized his voice.

"Hold your fire.  They are friends." She ordered.  She watched, eyes widening as the figures, all of them bearing muggle weapons, and some wands as well, took up position and began returning fire against the attacking dark forces.

"What is going on?" she asked as Sirius came up to her.  "Who are all these people?"

"This is Rainbow." Sirius replied.  "It is a mixed muggle/wizard strike force."

"Are you in command?" she asked, as she fired another spell.  Sirius shook his head.

"No." he replied.  "Merely a soldier.  Command is held jointly by John Clark, a muggle soldier, and Harry Potter."

******

About two miles away, Harry and the rest of the Marauders appeared just inside the tree line.  Harry surveyed the scene in front of him.  He could see the magnificent towers of the school in the distance, lit up by the unnatural light of curses, tracers and explosions.  He could see the mass of enemy troops surging towards the castle.  He grinned as he saw for the first time tracers coming from the castle; Rainbow was in position.  Turning his attention closer to his position, he saw a thin line of sentries guarding the rear.  About three hundred yards past them, he saw a large cluster of Death Eaters, seemingly arranged around another wizard.  He immediately knew it was Voldemort.

_"Okay, listen up." _He said to the others through the mind link.  _"We move in fast.  Change into you Animagus forms.  Fight that way as long as possible.  I'll signal when to change out of them."_

_"Got it Harry." _Hermione replied.  The others nodded.  A moment later seven animals charged out of the woods.

******

Bellatrix Lestrange was silently fuming.  She had hoped to take part in the assault on Beauxbatons.  But her Lord instead ordered her to take charge of the rear guard.  She didn't really see the point; given the size of the force they had, no one was going to beat them.  As much as she hated to admit it, her lord had made a wise move enlisting the help of the muggle terrorists.  They were indeed proving useful.  However she couldn't wait until they had taken over the world; then her master would let her have her fun and destroy them.

Sighing, she turned her attention back to her troops.  They were spread out in a ragged line, approximately fifteen yards apart.  Suddenly one of her men let out a scream.  A large phoenix was pecking at his eyes through the holes in his mask.  Then six more creatures stormed out of the woods.  Each began attacking here men.  She watched in horror as two lions, a fox and a wolf ripped several of her men to shreds.  Another of her people was being attacked in the eyes by a large owl.  The wolf finished off his victim, as did the phoenix.  Then both turned and looked at her.

_"Neville.  That's Bellatrix Lestrange."_ Harry said over the mind link.  Recognition flashed across Neville's animal face.  A second later he charged at her.  She tried to fire a killing curse at him, but he was too quick.  In a flash he had knocked her down and ripped at her throat with his teeth.  She let out a gurgled screamed as he ripped into her.  A moment later she was dead.

*****

Theodore Nott was standing next to his master, watching the battle for the castle when he heard several screams from behind.  He and several others next to him turned at the noise in time to see a large wolf rip into Bellatrix.

"My Lord!" he gasped.  Lord Voldemort turned, his eyes widening as he watched the rear guard being slaughtered.  Though he couldn't recognize the magical aura around the seven animals, he could tell that they were animagus.  When they were done, he saw them turn towards him and begin to move forward.  As he watched, they seven animals soon morphed into seven people; all black clad, all wearing baklavas over their faces.  Then he noticed the phoenix patch on their shoulders.

"What are you waiting for?" he screamed.  "Get them!"  Several of the Death Eaters exchanged looks, then mad their way towards the advancing figures.  They were soon joined by about two dozen more Death Eaters which Voldemort called from the attack against the castle, as well as twenty Dementors and fifty Vampires.

"Expecto Patronum!" the figures shouted.   All at once seven misty figures erupted from their wands.  Voldemort watched in shock.  It was not the fact that they had cast patronus's that had him bedazzled.  Nor was it the fact that the patronus's were blue instead of the typical silver; or the fact that they were twice the size of a normal patronus.  No, what shocked him the most was the fact that rather than just driving the Dementors away, these patronus's were actually destroying them.

A vicious fight of curses and bullets then erupted as the seven phoenix figures began taking out the rest of his forces.  Voldemort watched as one by one half of his followers fell.

_"Enough playing around." _Harry said the mind link as he fired a flame spell that enveloped a vampire nearby.  _"We've got to get Voldemort to pull more of his people from the main attack."_

_"How?" _Ginny said as she fired several rounds from her MP-9 at a cluster of death eaters advancing towards them.

_"Same way we did it at the Ministry." _Harry replied.  The rest of the Marauders moved closer to Harry.  They quickly joined hands.

"Maximus Expelliarmus!" they shouted.  A blinding flash, accompanied by a loud boom, rushed forth, hitting the remaining Death Eaters and Vampires.  The Death Eaters were thrown back several yards, knocking them unconscious.  The flash had a different effect on the Vampires, the light burning them up in an instant.

Watching from eighty yards away, Voldemort cursed, and then pressed the Dark Mark on his forearm.

"McGregor!  Move your division back here, immediately!" he ordered through the link the Dark Mark provided between him and his followers.

"But my lord, we're almost upon the schools defenders!" the Death Eater protested.

"Do not disobey me." Voldemort hissed.  On the other side of the link, McGregor gulped.

"As you command my lord." He replied.  A moment later, one hundred Death Eaters, accompanied by two hundred mercenaries, and fifty trolls were transported between Voldemort and the Phoenix team.

_"Well, looks like we got his attention." _Ron said through the Marauder's mind link.

*****

"Looks like Harry and the others managed to attract some attention." Ding said to Sirius as they returned fire against the enemy.  Several seconds earlier, a large portion of the attacking force disappeared from the front lines.  "That should by us the rest of the time we need."

Sirius nodded.  The evacuation was proceeding well, all of the students had been evacuated, and now the professors, as well as the wounded, were being evacuated.  Rainbow was holding its own, conducting a collapsing bag defense, slowly giving up ground and tightening its defensive perimeter to make up for those no longer in the line.  However, it would still be another ten minutes before they could pull out completely.

The ground in front of the castle was littered with the bodies of Death Eaters, trolls, vampires, and muggle mercenaries; as well as the bodies of several professors and a few of the Rainbow team.  Sirius fired an exploding curse at a group of Death Eaters, killing two and wounding four more.  Next to him, Ding and several Rainbow troopers were cutting down a Troll; their combined fire proving too much even for its normal tough hide.

Sirius felt a tap on his shoulder.  He turned to see Bill.

"The evacuation is complete," he said.  Sirius nodded and spoke into the comlink.

"Rainbow, this is Padfoot." He said.  "Execute plan tango.  Repeat, execute plan tango."

******

"Execute plan tango."

Harry heard Sirius' voice give the evacuation code over the comlink.  Firing a burst of silver bullets from his MP-9 at a werewolf that had joined the battle, he spoke through the mind link.

_"Okay.  Rainbow just pulled out." _Harry said.  _"Everyone get ready."_  The Marauders formed a tight circle, each reaching with their non-weapon hand to pull a grenade off of their belts.  As one, they brought the grenades to their mouths, pulled the pins and tossed them.  Blinding explosions obscured the group a second later as they apparated out of the area.  When the smoke cleared, the bodies of those Death Eaters unlucky enough to be in the blast radius littered the ground.

*****

The Great Hall at Hogwarts was pandemonium.  A short while earlier, students from Beauxbatons began portkeying to the school as part of the evacuation plan.  Professor McGonnagall was busy directing the Hogwarts prefects in where to place the new arrivals until such time as a more permanent arrangement could be made.  She glanced around after giving them their orders and saw Dumbledore talking to Madame Maxine.  A moment later he reached into his robes and pulled out his message parchment.  His twinkling eyes scanned the parchment.  Then he placed it back into his robes.  He then turned and began walking towards McGonnagall.

"Walk with me, Minerva." He said as he approached her.  She nodded and the pair exited the Great Hall and began walking.

"Are they alright?" Minerva asked after a moment.  Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes." He replied.  "The message you saw me reading before was Mr. Potter's report.  He and the rest of the Marauders are okay."

"I still can't believe that did that." She replied.  "Attacking Voldemort's army from behind by themselves.  They could have been slaughtered."  Dumbledore chuckled slightly.

"It never ceases to amaze me," he began, "how even knowing the prophecy, and after all they have accomplished in battle in the months they have been operating as the mysterious Phoenix Team, that we continue to underestimate them."  Minerva looked at him oddly.  "Don't you understand Minerva?  They were quite possibly the only ones who could have pulled such a feat off and give the others enough time to evacuate the school."

"I suppose you're right, Albus." McGonngall said.  "It's hard thinking of them as warriors though.  Especially Ginny and Neville.  To me they will always be students."  Dumbledore nodded his agreement and the pair continued their stroll.  Neither noticed two very different figures lurking in the shadows in different parts of the hall.

*****

"Oh my God!  Harry and the others are the Phoenix Team!" Pavarti Patil thought to herself.  The fate of the teens had been a topic of great speculation since they disappeared from Hogwarts.  The Daily Prophet was even running a contest regarding who could come up with the answer.  They were also running a contest on who could uncover the identity of the mysterious Phoenix Team.  Suddenly it struck Pavarti as odd that no one had made the connection until now.

She smiled.  She dreamed of opening her own clothing design business after Hogwarts, but had doubted she would ever be able to afford to do so.  Now the chance to ensure her dream would become a reality was staring her in the face.  She quickly rushed off towards the Owlery.

*****

An hour later, another figure made its way to the Owlery; carefully looking around to make sure she was not being seen.

Pansy Parkinson smiled gleefully as she began to write on a piece of parchment.  Her father had ordered her to keep her ears open for any interesting information concerning Potter and his friends.  As luck would have it, she was making her way back to the Slytherin Common Room when she heard Dumbledore and McGonnagall talking.  Finishing the note, she tied it to a school owl and instructed it to deliver the message to her father.

As the owl flew away, she couldn't help but feel excited.  When her father read the note he would almost certainly tell his master and she would be rewarded.


	27. Chapter 26: Raid on the Burrow and Regro...

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Chapter 25: Assault on the Burrow and Regrouping**

_The Secret of Harry Potter's Disappearance Revealed!_

_By Angela Evans_

_For many months the wizarding world has been speculating as to the whereabouts of the Boy-Who-Lived, who disappeared from Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft and Wizardry on Christmas day, along with six of his fellow Gryfinndor students. Little clues to their whereabouts have existed, and indeed many had begun to believe that they were dead; a claim rebuffed by Mr. Potter himself in a surprise visit to the Daily Prophet three months ago._

_At the same time, the wizarding world has been fascinated by the appearance of an elite group of masked wizards who over the last several months have been fighting the forces of Lord Voldemort. The identity of these wizards has been speculated over ever since their first appearance. Like the disappearance of Mr. Potter and his friends, there have been few clues._

_One month ago the Daily Prophet announced a dual contest concerning the fate of Mr. Potter and his friends as well as the identity of the mysterious "Phoenix Team." Simply stated, the first person to discover either the fate of Mr. Potter or the identity of the Phoenix Team would receive a prize of 10000 galleons respectively. Since the announcement, many theories had been offered, but none have offered proof. Until now._

_Last evening, we here at the Daily Prophet received an owl from one Pavarti Patil, a student at Hogwarts, which not only revealed the fate of Mr. Potter but also the identity of the Phoenix Team._

As incredible as it may seem, the fate of Mr. Potter and his friends and the identity of the Phoenix Team are directly tied to one another. Earlier last evening Ms. Patil overheard a conversation between Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts and the Minister of Magic, and Minerva McGonnagall, Deputy Headmistress and Transfiguration professor at Hogwarts. They were discussing the assault on the French wizarding school of Beauxbatons. During this conversation, Minister Dumbledore revealed that the identity of the Phoenix Team was none other than Harry Potter and his friends.

_We here at the Daily Prophet would like to congratulate Ms. Patil on winning both contests._

Dumbledore threw down the Daily Prophet in disgust. He was very angry at the moment; angry with the Prophet, angry at Ms. Patil, but most importantly, angry with himself. A knock at his door brought him out of his thoughts.

"Enter." He said. The door opened and Professor McGonnagall entered, with Pavarti in tow.

"Ah yes, Ms. Patil." Dumbledore said, his voice serious and his eyes missing the normal twinkle that was there. "I assume you know why I have called you here?" Pavarti nodded. "I'm afraid in your rush for gossip and to win a prize you have put many people in great danger. I would have expected better of you."

* * *

"Is everything ready, Wormtail?" Lord Voldemort hissed. The small, balding man before him cowered slightly before answering.

"Y..Yes my Lord." Peter Pettigrew (aka Wormtail) answered. "The initial strike force is in the woods as we speak. The follow up waves are standing by." Voldemort smiled. When the letter from Parkinson's brat of a child had arrived, he saw his chance to destroy Potter and the others in one fell swoop. A combined force of muggle mercenaries and Death Eaters would overcome the guard detail and attack the house. Voldemort knew that the "Phoenix Team" would be the first ones on the scene. Once they were there, Voldemort and his inner circle would put a series of powerful anti-apparation and portkey wards on the property. Then the second and third waves of forces, hiding in the woods, would attack. These waves would include more Death Eaters and muggle mercenaries, but also werewolves under special spells to keep them from attacking Voldemort's people, Vampires, Trolls and Red Caps.

"Excellent." He said. "In mere hours we will destroy Potter and his friends. Then the world will be ours.

* * *

Just outside the village of Ottery St. Catchpole, Aurors Eric Michaels and Jeremy Foote were patrolling along the edge of the forest that bordered the property of Deputy Minister Weasley. It had been a long and boring shift, and both were looking forward to the end of the next hour, when their relief would arrive. To pass the time, they had been discussing the contents of the special edition of the Daily Prophet that arrived earlier in the evening.

"I still can't believe it." Eric said. "Potter and his friends, the Phoenix Team!"

"I don't see what's so hard to believe." Jeremy said. "After all, they've been through more in the four years they've been at Hogwarts than most people. Besides, now that it's in the open, it makes sense. After all, the Phoenix Team made its first appearance shortly after Potter and his friends left Hogwarts."

"True." Eric replied. "I was at one of the scenes of their raids. All I can say is I'm glad they're on our side." Jeremy chuckled slightly. A rustling sound at the edge of the woods ahead brought them out of their discussion. Both men immediately became alert and drew their wands.

"Whose there?" Jeremy said. He heard a small pop and a groan. He whirled to see his partner fall to the ground, a bullet hole in his head. A second later he felt a sting at the back of his head and the world fell dark.

* * *

Arthur Weasley was sitting in his living room, reading the special edition of the Daily Prophet with disgust. He silently cursed both the paper and the girl Pavarti who leaked the story.

_Don't they know the danger they're putting people in by printing anything they want?_ He thought. He looked up as his wife walked into the room.

"Did you message the children?" Arthur asked. Molly nodded.

"Earlier today. They said provided things remain quiet after this article, they'll be here Sunday for dinner." She said, smiling. It would be the first time in over a month that they would see their children, both biological and "adopted." Suddenly the sounds of curses and small arms fire erupted outside. Moments later the house shuddered as curses and explosions hit the wards surrounding the house. The door burst open and Senior Auror Alice McKinsey rushed in, her shoulder bleeding from a wound.

"Death Eaters and muggle mercenaries have taken out most of the guard force." She said breathlessly. "You have to get out of here." Molly immediately went over to the fireplace and threw in some floo powder.

"Hogwarts!" she shouted as she stepped in. Nothing happened. Turning to Arthur and Alice, she said "They've blocked the Floo Network!" Arthur reached into his pocket for the emergency portkey he carried.

"Grab hold, we'll try this." All three grabbed the portkey and Arthur touched it with his wands and said the activating code word. Nothing happened. "Damn! It's not working." Suddenly the house rocked and the glass on the windows shattered.

"They've broken through the wards!" Alice shouted as she pushed both Arthur and Molly behind their large sofa, and then took cover behind a chair herself. A second later the front door exploded into hundreds of shards. Immediately all three began firing curses at the intruders making their way into the home. The first five Death Eaters that came through the door were hit and taken out. But more kept coming.

Arthur heard a scream and turned in time to see a pair of Death Eaters on the stairs, having obviously come in from the roof. One of them fired a curse at Alice, which hit her head on and she dropped to the floor, dead. Arthur was able to fire two curses at them before he himself was hit by a stunning curse. His last sight before the darkness overwhelmed him was of Molly being hit by another curse and falling to the ground.

* * *

Neville yawned slightly and took a sip of the coffee he had in his mug. He had volunteered to stand watch in the Operations Room tonight, along with Sergeant Erika Forbes of Team-4. The two had become close friends over the last few weeks, after they discovered they had a mutual interest in muggle comic books. But deeper than that was the fact that Neville had begun to develop a crush on the 19-year-old Erika.

_I wish I could tell her how I feel._ He thought to himself. _But even if I did, what good would it do? She's four years older than me. She wouldn't be interested in me._ Little did he know that sitting at the other desk a few feet away, Erika was thinking along similar lines.

_He's really cute. And certainly a lot more mature than his age._ She thought. _But he's still four years younger than me._ The base alarms began blaring, bringing both out of their daydreams. Neville looked at the Situation Map and paled.

* * *

Harry had just drifted off to sleep a few minutes earlier when the alarms began blaring. He and Ginny had stayed up rather late, trying to figure out the best way to control the reaction to the Prophet story. Groggily he called out to Neville in his mind.

_What the hell's going on?_ Harry asked Neville through the mind link. Next to him, Ginny was also now sitting up.

_Voldemort's launched another attack. It's a big one._ Neville replied. _Harry, the target is the Burrow._ Upon hearing those words, both Ginny and Harry shot out of bed and rushed to their lockers. In record time they had their gear on and rushed to the Operations Room. Along the way they met up with Fred, George, Ron, Hermione, Sirius, Remus, Ding, and John. A moment later they were all gathered around the Situation Map.

"Damn." Ron said as they saw the size of Voldemort's force. Harry turned to John.

"How long will it take you to get all of your people together?" he asked.

"About fifteen minutes." John replied. Harry looked at the other Marauders. They all nodded. Then he turned to John.

"As soon as they're assembled, use the portkeys to get to the Burrow. We'll go ahead and keep them busy." He said. Both John and Sirius opened their mouths to object, but before they could the Marauders had apparated away.

* * *

The Marauders re-appeared behind the large shed Arthur kept on the far side of the property. Looking around, they were horrified at what they saw. The bodies of four Aurors were strewn on the ground. Several hundred yards away, the newly remodeled and expanded Burrow was in shambles, having clearly been hit with a combination of curses and muggle explosives. Several lookouts were posted between them and the house. Harry signaled the others and they began to slowly and covertly make their way towards the house, stopping only to take out the lookouts with their silenced MP-5s.

When the reached the house, the carefully peered around the corner. Beyond the house they could see a several large clusters of Death Eaters and mercenaries, apparently dividing up the valuables they looted from the house. Several feet away, arrayed in a circle, was a smaller group of Death Eaters. Then they heard the screams.

"That's dad!" Ginny said. No sooner had the words escaped her mouth then one of the Death Eaters shifted, giving them a partial view inside the circle. Molly was on the ground, clearly unconscious and badly injured. Arthur had flung himself on top of her in an effort to block the multiple Cruciatus curses being flung at them. Harry felt a boiling rage rise up inside himself and felt the same from the others. He knew that they were outnumbered and it would be suicide to attack now, but he didn't care. Without glancing back at the others he opened fired with his submachine gun and charged out from cover. Right behind him were the others. Ron and Ginny moved to the left, charging towards their parents, while the rest of the Marauders began dealing with the others. Within moments Ron and Ginny had cleared out most of the Death Eaters in the vicinity of their parents and dragged them to a crater nearby.

Meanwhile, Harry and the other Marauders had their hands full. When the rest of Voldemort's troops that had been dividing up their booty saw what was happening, they turned towards the group. A fierce fire-fight erupted as bullets, curse, and explosives were hurled between the two groups. Harry grinned savagely as he fired an exploding hex that took out two Death Eaters and several mercenaries. For a few short moments, it looked like despite the odds, the Marauders were going to effective wipe out the enemy force. Then Harry heard Ron yell through the link.

_Harry! Twelve O'clock! _Ron said. Harry turned in that direction to see another group of mercenaries and Death Eaters come charging out of the woods. There were at least two hundred of them. Then another sound caused him to look in another direction. His eyes widened as he saw a mass of Death Eaters, Mercenaries, Trolls, and Vampires emerge from another clearing. This was Voldemort's main force. Next to him, Hermione also saw them.

_Shit! There must be at least a thousand of them!_ Hermione said through the link.

_We need to get out of here! _Harry said through the link. _Everyone apparate now! Ron, you and Ginny take your parents._ A moment later they tried to apparate out, only to find that they couldn't. _Damn. Voldemort's set up some kind of ward._ The five Marauders retreated to the crater where Ron and Ginny had taken shelter with Arthur and Molly.

"How the hell did he manage that?" Fred asked.

"It wasn't just him." Harry said. "From what I felt when we tried to leave, there were magical traces of at least three hundred witches and wizards on the wards blocking us."

"What about our emergency portkeys?" Ginny asked as she fired at some approaching mercenaries. Harry ducked down to avoid a curse that was heading for the space that had just been occupied by his head.

"No good." He said, firing a quick burst of his weapon. "I felt anti-portkey wards as well."

"Then how the hell are we going to get out of here?" Ron asked.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Rainbow base, the entire unit, minus the Marauders had been assembled and briefed.

"Okay people, let's go." John said. They activated the special portkeys. Nothing happened. Sirius and Remus immediately paled. "What's wrong?"

"Voldemort's found some way to block the portkeys." Remus said in disbelief. Over by the Situation Map, Sergeant Forbes spoke up.

"Sirs, I think you better take a look at this." She said, a mixture of awe and fear in her voice. John, Ding, Sirius and Remus went over to the map. The map was displaying the layout of the Burrow and the property surrounding it. Seven gold dots, indicating the Marauders, along with two blue dots (indicating Arthur and Molly) were clustered together. Surrounding them were two hundred red dots (indicating Death Eaters) and four hundred silver dots (indicating mercenaries). But that wasn't the worse of it. Moving towards this cluster from three spots in the woods was a mass of dots indicating an addition three hundred Death Eaters, six hundred mercenaries, one hundred vampires, fifty trolls, and about one hundred werewolves.

"Shit." Ding said, turning to John, Sirius, and Remus. "We have to figure out some way of getting there. They're going to be overrun if we don't." Sirius nodded grimly. Despite the power of the seven, the shear numbers of troops that Voldemort was throwing into the battle would overwhelm them eventually. And he had no doubt that there might be even more reserves hiding elsewhere. The problem was, without portkeys or apparition; they would be limited to muggle transportation. Vehicles would take too long; the battle would be over before they could get there. Suddenly he had an idea.

"What about the choppers?" he said. John turned.

"Did they finish the modifications?" he asked. Sirius nodded.

"Yeah, but we haven't had a chance to test them." He replied. Ding grinned.

"Well, there's no time better than the present." He said.

* * *

Harry cursed slightly as he fired another spell at the advancing mass. The Marauders had been fighting furiously for the last fifteen minutes and had taken down a large number of the enemy. But more just kept coming to take their place. All of the Marauders now had minor wounds, and by the way things were going, if help didn't arrive soon there would be some serious injuries very soon.

"Incoming!" Neville called as the sound of an incoming mortar round reached their ears. The Marauders threw themselves to the ground. The shell impacted just outside of the crater, making the ground shake. Harry raised his head in time to see about thirty pale figures approaching at rapid speed. As they grew closer, he realized what they were.

"Vampires!" Harry shouted to the others. "Lumos Solarum!" The sunlight spell caught three of the undead warriors. They shrieked as their bodies blistered and turned to dust. Next to him, Ginny also made contact with two targets with the same spell. Ron had put his MP-5 down and was using a small crossbow pistol he carried to fire wooden darts at them, taking out four more. Meanwhile, Hermione, Neville, Fred, and George continued firing at the Death Eaters and mercenaries that were slowly making their way toward them.

Harry cursed as two of the vampires leapt into the crater. He drew the wooden stake he carried on his utility belt (it had been Hermione's suggestion) and fired several rounds into the nearest vampire. The bullets impacted the creature, causing it to be disoriented for a second. A second was all Harry needed. He lashed out with his right arm and plunged the stake into the foul creature's heart. As the creature crumbled to dust, Harry was knocked over, landing on his back. Standing over him was another vampire.

"Now you shall die, Harry Potter." It said. Suddenly he burst into dust. As it crumbled, Ginny's face appeared holding her own stake. She rushed over to Harry and helped him up.

"Are you okay" she asked, her eyes betraying her concern. Harry grinned.

"Yeah, thanks." He replied, moving back to his position. All the attacking vampires were gone, but the enemy was now getting dangerously close.

_I think we're going to have use our special spell._ Harry said through the link. Quickly the Marauders joined hands.

"Maximus Expelliarmus!" they shouted in unison. A bright flash erupted in all directions from the crater, sending about three hundred of Voldemort's troops flying back about a hundred yards; killing many.

* * *

Sirius stared out the door of the Blackhawk helicopter with grim determination. It had been thirty minutes since they had taken off from Rainbow's base and began the forty-five minute trip at maximum speed towards the Burrow. Outside, fifteen more Blackhawks were flying in formation with them. Sirius silently wished there was someway to make them go faster. Given the size of the attacking force, it became less likely with every minute that passed that they would arrive in time to aid the Marauders.

"We'll get there in time." John said, leaning over to him. Sirius turned.

"I hope you're right." He said.

* * *

Standing a small hill about a mile from the battle at the Burrow, Voldemort watched the battle with joy. Potter and his friends were fighting fiercely, inflicting heavy casualties on his troops, but it was clear that they were becoming tired and running out of ammunition. He smiled.

_Soon. A little longer and they will be mine._ He thought, and then turned to the Death Eater standing next to him. "Send in the last of the reserves." The Death Eater nodded and moved off. Voldemort watched as a few minutes later, an additional six hundred muggle mercenaries were thrown into the attack. Slowly the flashes of gunfire from the crater where Potter and his friends had taken refuge began to slow. They were running out of ammunition.

* * *

"I'm out of ammo!" Ron called as he finished off the last clip for his MP-5 and pulled his .45 pistol. Harry nodded grimly. He too had used the last of his MP-5 ammo only moments before. He glanced around. Of the seven, only Fred still seemed to have ammo for his submachine gun. The rest had drawn their pistols. Turning back to survey the enemy, Harry winced. The combined Death Eater/mercenary force was now within fifteen yards of their position. Worse, another group of reserves had just been thrown into the attack.

The Marauders had been fighting fiercely for nearly forty-five minutes. The shear numbers that Voldemort had been throwing at them had left them all rapidly draining of magical energy, as evident by the weakening power of their spells. Suddenly the enemy stopped firing. A moment later they heard Voldemort's voice boom through the darkness.

"I'll give you one chance to surrender Potter. You and your friends have fought bravely and well. But as always, such courage has been wasted. You cannot win. Give up now and you may live. I can always use a few more Death Eaters." He said.

_I'd give really money to have just one shot at him before we die._ Ron said disgustedly through the link.

_Harry, tell this asshole to get stuffed!_ Neville said. The others agreed. Harry quickly cast the Sonorus charm on himself.

"Forget it Tom!" he shouted. "You want us; come and get us!" Then he took off the charm. Ejecting the empty clip from his .45, he slapped a new on in and drew his knife with his left had. He glanced at the others and nodded. They two had taken out their blades. Together they turned back towards their advancing foes and prepared to make the enemy pay dearly for their victory.

* * *

"Oh my God." Captain Mark Gideon, the pilot of the Blackhawk in which Sirius was riding said as they approached the Burrow. Down below, illuminated by fires and the flashes of spells, was a seen straight out of hell. Craters were everywhere and bodies were strewn about like rag dolls.

At the door, Sirius and John looked out over the scene. Sirius spotted the crater where the Marauders were.

"There!" he shouted, pointing. John looked and saw nine figures in a large crater. On all sides, masses of enemy troops were closing. From the flashes, it looked like the Marauders were down to their .45 sidearms. He quickly keyed his mic.

"Attention Conastogas. Execute plan Bravo." He said. "Conastoga 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, lay down suppression fire around that crater. Conastoga 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15, prepare for combat zip line deployment." The troopers in those helicopters immediately began preparing to drop zip lines and repel out of the choppers. Meanwhile, the other seven swooped down towards the battle. A moment later the twin mini guns located on each door began spitting a lethal rain of silver bullets at the masses of enemy troops, forming a perimeter around the crater. Once a sufficient number of bad guys were driven off or killed, then took back off into the air. The next group choppers then swooped in.

* * *

Voldemort screamed in rage as he clutched his right leg, blood-oozing out after the impact of a bullet. Mere moments ago he was sure he was nearing his greatest victory, when suddenly the cursed muggle helicopters arrived. He watched horror as seven of them swooped and proceeded to rip his troops to shreds. He could hear the agonized screams of his troops as the bullets tore through their bodies. A moment later a stray bullet had slammed into his leg.

"My Lord, what should we do?" the Death Eater next to him asked. Voldemort watches another moment as eight more helicopters came in low. Two ropes appeared from each and about twelve men from each helicopter came down the ropes and took up positions just outside of the crater, their weapons blazing at those of his troops still attacking. Once the men were all on the ground, the eight helicopter began firing their guns as well.

"We will retreat, for now." He said, almost choking on the words. A moment later he disapparted.

* * *

Harry's heart leapt in his throat as he heard the sound of helicopters approaching. He looked up to see the second most beautiful sight he'd ever seen (the first being Ginny, of course). Sixteen Blackhawk helicopters came flying into the area. He watched as seven of them swooped in and began forming a wall of silver bullets between the crater and Voldemorts troops. He watched as about four hundred of the enemy was cut down and most of the rest dive for cover. Then the choppers moved off. Some of Voldemort's troops regrouped themselves and resumed the advance but it was clearly not the overwhelming consensus of the rest. Then he saw eight more Blackhawks come in low and watched as the zip lines appeared. Less than two minutes later, ninety-six of his fellow Rainbow troopers had hit the ground and formed a perimeter around the crater, their submachine guns and wands already engaging the enemy. Two of the troopers jumped into the crater next to him.

"Everyone okay?" John asked. Harry nodded.

"Mostly magical exhaustion and some moderate flesh wounds. Arthur and Molly are unconscious though." Harry replied. "What the hell took you so long?"

"Had to stop for some bagels." Ding said. Harry grinned.

"They're pulling out!" Sirius shouted to the trio. They turned their attention towards Voldemorts troops. Apparently Voldemort had taken down the wards, because a large number of his surviving troops were either apparating or using portkeys to get away. Harry let out a sigh of relief. It was over.

* * *

"How is he?" Harry asked. After Voldemort and his forces retreated from the Burrow, the Marauders had taken Molly and Arthur to Hogwarts. The infirmary there had been enlarged several months ago to help treat the increase casualties that were occurring. Molly had awoken the next day and within a week was able to be moved out of the infirmary and into spare quarters. Arthur unfortunately was still in a coma, now going on seven days. The Marauders all decided to remain at Hogwarts by his side, leaving only when necessary. Currently Harry was standing in the infirmary, just behind Molly and Ginny.

The week since the attack had been quiet. It seemed the casualties inflicted by the Marauders and by Rainbow were serious enough to cause Voldemort to go into hiding to regroup his forces. Unfortunately, the lack of activity only meant that there was more time for everyone to dwell on what had happened and what had almost happened. Harry in particular was feeling a deep level of guilt; guilt for not being able to reach Arthur and Molly in time and even worse, for letting his emotions get the better of him and allowing him to lead the woman he loved and his five best friends into a confrontation that they barely escaped alive.

"He's still unconscious." Molly replied. "But Madame Pompfrey says his vitals are stable. He'll be alright, he's a fighter." Ginny got up out of her chair and went to Harry.

"I know that look." Ginny said. Harry blushed slightly, realizing that despite closing the mental link he shared with the Marauders, Ginny could always tell what was on his mind. "Let's get one thing straight. YOU have nothing to feel guilty for. There's no way we could have known Voldemort would have been able to assemble such a large force or that he'd be able block apparation and portkeys after we arrived. And do you honestly think that Ron, Fred, George and myself wouldn't have charged into the fray after mom and dad even if you had ordered us not to? And what about Hermione and Neville? They're like you; they've been adopted' into the family. Do you think they wouldn't have also?" Harry looked at her face, his eyes searching hers. In his heart, he knew she was right.

"You're right." He said. "But that still doesn't help. We could have been killed because of that. We should know better."

"Harry." John's voice called from behind. He had entered the infirmary a moment earlier and overheard Ginny's speech. "Ginny's right. No matter how good you are or how much you know, everyone still mistakes. What's important is that you learn from them."

* * *

Ron's eyes fluttered opened as the alarm next to his bed went off. Shaking the cobwebs from his face, he glanced at the vision of beauty that lay next to him. He smiled as his mind thought back to the previous night.

BEGIN FLASHBACK

Ron sat on the bed of the quarters that he and Hermione were sharing while they were at Hogwarts, deep in thought. Like Harry and Ginny, he and Hermione had been sharing a bed for a while now, though they had not moved beyond the exploration' stage. Not that Hermione would have objected if he suggested it. But like Harry, he was too noble to do so, preferring to take things slow.

But his thinking began to change over the last few days as the realization of the events at the Burrow hit him. Not only did he almost lose his parents, but he and his friends came perilously close to becoming casualties themselves. He had long ago reached the realization of what war would be like; but for some reason it never seemed as real as it did right now.

_I almost lost her._ He thought. _And who knows how much time we have left?_

"Galleon for your thoughts." Hermione said, having just entered the room. Ron looked up and smiled. Then he got up and walked over to her, pulling her into a passionate kiss. After a few moments, they broke apart.

"Hermione, I've been doing some thinking." He said as they sat down on the bed. "The last few days have really made me realize how little time we may have. And I can't live with myself knowing that we might not be able to be with each other. I guess what I'm saying is that if you're still ready-" He was cut off as Hermione pulled him into another kiss, this one more passionate than before.

END FLASHBACK

They had made love four times last night and it was truly the best experience of Ron's life. As he lay in bed reflecting, he realized that there was something else he wanted…no needed to do. Next to him, Hermione stirred, her chocolate-brown eyes opening to look at him.

"Morning." She said smiling.

"Morning love." Ron said. "Hermione, remember what I asked you at Christmas?" Hermione nodded. "Well, I don't want to wait any longer. I don't care how young we are. I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me?" Hermione burst into tears, hugging him fiercely.

"Of course I will." She replied.

* * *

Two weeks later, the Marauders were back at Rainbow headquarters. There still had been no change in Arthur's condition, but everyone felt the need to get back to as normal a routine as possible. All seven of them still visited Hogwarts on a daily basis however. Ron and Hermione had announced their decision the same morning they made it and were married by Dumbledore three days later. Harry was extremely happy for them. In fact, his conversation with Ron that evening concerning why they changed there minds had gotten Harry thinking as well.

Ron was right. None of them knew what the future held. The prophecy implied that they would be the ones to beat Voldemort, but after what happened at the Burrow, who could be sure? He knew that he loved Ginny with all his heart and that she loved him. He also knew that he wouldn't…no couldn't allow their relationship to take the ultimate physical step outside of marriage; it just wasn't him. Ginny would be fifteen in three months; the legal age to marry in the wizarding world with parental consent. Harry planned on asking Molly for that permission that same day.

* * *

Madame Pompfrey made her way to the bed where Arthur lay, preparing to check his vitals for the third time in as many hours. As she sat down and began to do so, she noticed his eyes flicker slightly. She began to get excited.

"Mr. Weasley, can you here me?" she asked. At first their was no response and she thought that perhaps she had been imagining things. Then a low voice answered.

"Yes." Arthur said. "Where am I?"

* * *

Harry and Ginny had just returned from the gym having completed their afternoon workout when Ron came running up to them, Hermione close behind. Ginny immediately began to worry.

"What's wrong?" she asked. Ron broke into a huge grin.

"Dad's awake." He replied.


	28. Chapter 27: A Press Conference, Night of...

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Chapter 27:** A Press Conference, Night of Tears, and a Birthday Celebration 

The night after Arthur awoke from his coma saw the first major party at Rainbow Headquarters since the bar brawl several months ago. It was actually a triple celebration; they were celebrating Ron and Hermione's wedding, Arthur's recovery, and more importantly, the fact that despite how close the Marauders had come to death, Rainbow had been able to inflict heavy casualties on Voldemort's forces. When the final cleanup at the Burrow had been completed, no less than eight hundred enemy bodies (and parts of bodies) had been accounted for. More importantly, at least one hundred wounded prisoners had also been taken, and were currently being interrogated for information. Unfortunately most of the prisoners were low-level followers of Voldemort or low-level muggles, and therefore neither Harry nor the others were expecting much to be learned.

Harry smiled as he watched his fellow Rainbow troopers whooping it up in the main assembly hall. The party had been going on for almost four hours and a great many of them were approaching inebriation.

_"Who are you kidding."_ Ginny said through the mind link. She had come up along side him. _"Most of them ARE inebriated."_

"True." Harry said grinning. He watched as several people struggled to move off the dance floor without falling down. Then he saw Julio Vega, Team-2's heavy weapons specialist, come over.

"Hey, Harry, Ginny." He said, smiling. "Great party don't you think?"

"Yeah Vega." Harry said. "Its about time we had something to celebrate."

"Don't you worry, _mano_." Vega replied. "There's gonna be plenty more where this came from. Rainbow ain't never taken on a mission it couldn't win."

* * *

Harry sighed as he sat down on the bed he and Ginny were sharing. He had left the party only a half hour ago, feeling pretty exhausted. Ginny was still at the party, though she had just told Harry through the mind link that she would be leaving soon. Harry heard his message parchment give a soft tone. Pulling it out of his pocket, he read the message. It was from Albus.

_Harry,_

_I've been thinking about what to do concerning the Daily Prophet article that came out just before the attack on the Burrow. As much as I would like to, I don't think we're going to be able to keep denying it much longer. Its clear from the prisoners Rainbow has interrogated that Voldemort had already discovered the true identities of the Phoenix Team before the article in the prophet. Based on what I've heard, it's clear he has many spies in this school; one of them must have overheard the same conversation that Ms. Patil heard. But it is also clear that he does not know of the prophecy. That subject has never been discussed openly by any of us who know it._

_Based on this, I believe that perhaps the time has come to confirm the report in the Prophet. Since the cat, as the muggles say, is already out of the bag, I do not see it hurting anything. All of your families are now residing at either Rainbow Headquarters (a place you would agree that is probably safer than anywhere else in the world) or here at Hogwarts. As are the families of the rest of Rainbow._

_In fact, I believe that we may be able to use this too our advantage. Learning of the existence of Rainbow, as well as confirming that you, Msgrs. Weasley, Ms. Weasley, Ms. Granger and Mr. Longbottom are indeed the Phoenix Team, will probably have the positive effect of inspiring the people and giving them hope. No matter what the Ministry does, the people see you, Harry, as their greatest hope. I know that you do not like the attention, but perhaps it is time we put it to use._

_With your permission, I will schedule a press conference tomorrow afternoon here at Hogwarts._

* * *

The next morning, Harry spoke with the rest of the Marauders, as well as John concerning Dumbledore's message. After a brief discussion, they decided that perhaps it was the best option at the moment. They then spent the next few hours discussing which information to reveal and which information to withhold. Around 2pm, they took a special portkey to Hogwarts. After arriving, they went to the Headmaster's office.

"Ah, how good to see you again." Dumbledore said, arising from his desk when they walked in. "I'm glad that you decided to agree to this. I truly believe it will do some good."

"You're welcome, Albus." Harry said. "Shall we get on with it?" Dumbledore nodded.

"I will go down to the Main Hall where the reporters are assembled. I will make the opening presentation and then signal for you to appear." Dumbledore said.

* * *

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen." Dumbledore said, stepping up to the podium at the front of the Hall. All the tables that normally filled the hall had been removed, and a small stage set up at the front of the Hall. It was on this stage where Dumbledore and the podium now were. Several large rows of chairs filled about half the Hall. Sitting in these seats were representatives of every wizarding news outlet in the world, as well as some representatives from various other Ministries of Magic.

"I have called this press conference to address an article that appeared in the Daily Prophet over a week ago, the events related to the attack on Deputy Minister of Magic Arthur Weasley, and the rumors and speculation that have arisen as a result of both. I am sure you are all aware of the report that appeared in the Daily Prophet, in which a Hogwarts student provided information regarding the identity of the mysterious Phoenix Team' that has been credited with stopping several dozen attacks by forces associated with Lord Voldemort, as well as the disappearance of seven Hogwarts students from the school early in the school year, most notably Harry Potter. To refresh everyone's memories, this student reported that the identity of the Phoenix Team and the disappearance of Mr. Potter and his friends were tied together.

I have come here today to confirm that report."

Surprised conversation suddenly erupted among the assembled guests. Many had expected a ferverent denial of the stories that had appeared in the Prophet and other newspapers. Several began shouting questions. Dumbledore raised his hand to quiet the crowd down.

"Please hold your questions. You will have ample opportunity to ask your questions at the end." Dumbledore said. The crowd quieted down. "This past summer, in recognition of the fact that Mr. Potter has been and will continue to be, a target for Lord Voldemort, I decided to arrange for Mr. Potter and his friends to receive special training in defense. These young men and women are among the best students in Hogwarts and had already distinguished themselves on several occasions. But even I was astonished by the progress they made during the summer months. Upon further research, it was discovered that the increase in their powers were attributed to an extremely rare magical event, one that has not been recorded in over 1000 years, known as the Quickening. Simply put, the Quickening is an event that occurs with the very rare and specific alignment of the planets. No one knows why it happens, but when conditions are right, a witch or wizard who is affected by the Quickening will experience a major magical growth spurt, which not only affects their magical ability, but also their physical appearance, intellect, and emotional maturity, advancing all four at an accelerated rate. More astonishing, until last summer, the only known cases of the Quickening involved one or two wizards; never before has a group of seven individuals all experience the Quickening.

Upon their return to Hogwarts, it was decided by the staff at Hogwarts to place them in an advanced course of study. At this time they were also inducted into the prestigious Order of the Phoenix. By October the progress of these students was such that we allowed those who had not already done so to take their OWLs, with the expectation that all seven would be ready to take their NEWTs in December. Needless to say, Mr. Potter and his friends passed both examinations with flying colors. As you are further aware, they fought bravely and well at both the Battle of the Ministry and the Battle of Azkaban in October. After the disasters that night and my ascension as Minister of Magic, I further expanded their training to include Auror training. Again, this was completed in a matter of weeks.

Just prior to Christmas, Mr. Potter approached me with a proposal. He and his friends, having completed both their Hogwarts education and Auror training in record time, would leave Hogwarts and begin conducting special operations-style raids against Voldemort's followers as a means to disrupt their plans and give the Ministry time to rebuild. Given the changes in all seven students from the Quickening, I could see no reason to deny the request. As you all know, they left Hogwarts on Christmas Eve. Only myself, Deputy Minister Arthur Weasley and a select group knew of the true story behind their disappearance. For the next few months, the Phoenix Team as they were called, successfully intervened in several operations put into place by forces loyal to Lord Voldemort.

In March, Ministry intelligence began to receive disturbing information that Lord Voldemort, whose hatred for muggles is well known, had decided to seek out alliances with many of the worst muggles in the world. These were men and women associated with terrorist and criminal organizations. However this intelligence could not be confirmed. Until the attack on the East London Mall. This attack was conducted by a joint force of Deatheaters and allied muggle mercenaries. A muggle international anti-terrorist unit was dispatched within minutes to deal with the attack. This unit was known as Rainbow.

Predictably, Rainbow was unprepared for the size and type of attack they soon experienced. A short time later, the Phoenix Team responded to the scene and helped rescue Rainbow. In the after action review, it was shown that while Rainbow was outgunned, they did in fact managed to inflict significant casualties on the enemy force. At Mr. Potter's request, the Ministry of Magic opened negotiations with the governments who created Rainbow, with the ultimate goal of incorporating the Phoenix Team, as well as selected Aurors, into Rainbow, thereby creating a joint muggle-wizard commando unit to deal with Voldemort and his allies. It was this unit that aided in the evacuation of Beauxbatons, as interdicting several of Voldemort's attacks. It was also this unit that rescued Deputy Minister Weasley and his wife.

Now, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce the Phoenix Team, and the commander of Rainbow." A moment later, the Marauders and John appeared on the stage.

* * *

**_Minister of Magic Confirms Identity of the Phoenix Team; Announces Existence of Joint Muggle/Ministry Strike Force_**

Harry put down his copy of the Daily Prophet and smiled. Dumbledore had skillfully confirmed the Prophet story, given enough additional detail to satisfy the media, and successfully kept much of the truth behind the Marauders ascension from Hogwarts students to the Phoenix Team, including the source of their incredible power. It had been a stroke of genius to blame their new powers on the Quickening, a phenomenon that was as mysterious today as it was over a thousand years ago.

The question and answer period that had followed Dumbledore's speech had been interesting, to say the lease. There were a lot of questions regarding the necessity and wisdom of allying with a muggle commando force, questions that were dealt with very expertly by Dumbledore and John.

Dubledore had been correct in his belief that the confirmation of the story would have a positive effect. Every wizarding news outlet in Britain was reporting a huge jump in morale among the general wizarding public and in the last twenty-four hours the Ministry had seen a 150% jump in the number of applicants to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Additionally, the Ministry was receiving an increase in the amount of tips from citizens regarding dark activity and from Harry's understanding, there were a large number of messages of support for the Phoenix Team, Rainbow and the Ministry.

"Well, it looks like it worked." Ginny said as she sat down in the chair across from Harry.

"Yeah." Harry replied, smiling at her. "I have to admit I didn't think it would."

* * *

"Do you mind if I sit here?" Erika said. Neville looked up from his book. Erika was standing by the table holding her tray of food.

"Not at all." He replied, smiling at her. She set her tray down and sat down. For the next few minutes neither of them said anything, Neville returning to his book and Erika eating her dinner. Several times Erika thought she saw Neville staring at her from behind his book.

"It's been awfully quiet lately, don't you think?" she asked finally. It had been four weeks since the press conference and aside from one or two minor attacks, and four pre-emptive raids on the part of Rainbow, very little had happened. In fact, it was so quiet that John and Harry had decided that the time had come for another base party, this time a dance. Neville put his book down.

"Yeah. I guess Voldemort is regrouping his troops." Neville said. "Unfortunately, I have the feeling that the next time we here from them it's going to be worse than before." Erika nodded. She couldn't help but look into his eyes.

_God I could get lost in those eyes._ She thought to herself.

"Listen, Neville. I was wondering – I mean if you don't want to its okay –" she said. Neville looked at her questioningly. "What I mean is, would you be my date for the dance tonight?" She looked down at her tray, blushing. Neville felt his own face color slightly as inside his stomach did a summersault.

"I'd love to." He said finally. Erika raised her eyes, smiling.

"Really?" she said.

"Really." He replied.

* * *

"Look's like Erika finally got her man." Vega said. He was standing off to the side with Ding and Harry. The dance had been going on for two hours now and so far, it looked like a success. Most of the married couples on base were in attendance, and most of the rest of Rainbow was also there. No one was in uniform; John and Harry had figured it would be nice for everyone to act as normal as possible given the circumstances. It was proving to be a nice diversion from the events of the last year.

Harry looked out onto the dance floor and saw Neville and Erika dancing very close to each other. Harry smiled. He knew that Neville had been attracted to Erika for some time, but had been hesitant about pursuing the relationship given their age differences. He also knew from his conversations with various Rainbow members that Erika had been attracted to Neville but had hesitated for the same reason. He wondered who had finally approached who. Not that it mattered. Whomever had asked who, it was clear that something was developing.

"Galleon for your thoughts." Ginny said as she came up behind Harry. Harry turned and pulled her to him, kissing her lightly on the lips.

"Just watching Neville and Erika." He said. Ginny looked over in that direction and smiled.

"I'm glad one of them finally made a move." She said. Harry, Vega, and Ding all nodded. A moment later the music stopped and Neville and Erika walked hand and hand off the dance floor and made their way over.

"Having fun?" Ding asked them.

"Definitely." Neville said, casting a smile at Erika, who blushed slightly. Harry opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off as the base alarm sounded.

"Why does this always happen at a dance?" Ginny said.

* * *

In the village of Middleton, Scotland, Senior Patrolman William Malone sat in his car at a red light. A ten-year veteran of the Middleton police force, he was filling in for a sick colleague. As he sat at the light, he noticed movement down the street. Several figures were moving about, though he couldn't really make them out. Then the light turned green and his began to accelerated down the road. He had gone no more than fifty feet when at flash registered in his peripheral vision and a second later, an anti-tank rocket slammed into his patrol car.

From a dozen feet away, Ernie Micklen smiled and turned to his companion, who was dressed in black cloak and wore a skeleton mask.

"That should be the only one on duty." He said. His companion nodded, raising his wand and sending red sparks into the air. A moment later, hell was unleashed on the sleeping residents of the small town.

* * *

Thirty miles away, in the village of Hamm, Ding Chavez and Team-2 had just portkeyed into the town square. All around them buildings burned and several green skulls were hanging over the town. The sounds of curses and gunfire could be heard further into the village. Ding signaled the team to move. Two by two, the members of Team-2, including Vega, Sirius, and Tonks, began moving towards the sounds. A few moments after they began moving, they made contact with the first of the enemy. Shots rang out as the two-muggle mercenaries the team came across attempted to fight them, only to be taken out. Then more shots were fired at them as several more mercenaries, as well as three Deatheaters, attacked.

Ding took out two targets with a quick burst from his submachine gun, while Sirius managed to hit one of the Deatheaters with a slashing curse. The firefight continued for several minutes, and ended in the deaths of the enemy raiding force and some minor injuries to two members of Team-2.

* * *

"Stupefy!" Harry shouted, knocking the last Deatheater several feet across the street and slamming him into the wall of a nearby building. He looked around and cursed. Everything had been going so well. It had been five weeks since the attack on the Burrow with relatively little activity and the entire unit was getting much needed rest, culminating in the base dance. That was until an hour ago when the base alarms sounded, breaking the revelry. When Harry and the others had reached the Situation Room, they were overwhelmed with what they saw.

Voldemort had obviously decided to go back to the tactics that had served him well in the last war. This time there were not one or two big attacks but five-dozen separate small raids. Rainbow had immediately leapt into action, but the sheer volume of attacks, along with the distance between the locations of the attacks (which ranged from Northern Scotland, to Southern England, to western Ireland to eastern France). The Ministries of all three countries also responded, dispatching Aurors to those areas where Rainbow could not go, but again, the sheer volume of the attacks had stretched their defenses to the limit.

The Marauders were currently on the island of Iona in western Scotland. Voldemort had dispatched a force of Deatheaters and mercenaries to attack the historic Anglican abbey that resided there and the many tourists who were currently on the island. This was the third attack that the Marauders had responded to that night. They had been successful in stopping the first two attacks very easily and before much damage had been done to those two towns. Unfortunately it was not so easy at Iona. For one, the force that Voldemort had dispatched was larger than most of the others. For another, the enemy had a critical twenty-five minute head-start before anyone could get to the island.

_I think that's all of them._ Ron said to Harry via the link. Harry nodded.

_Where's Ginny and Hermione?_ Harry asked, looking around. He saw Neville, Fred, and George checking the wounded.

_We're two blocks away._ Ginny answered over the link. _We found some kids._

_Are they okay?_ Ron asked.

_Just a little shaken up and very frightened._ Hermione answered.

_We'll bring all the survivors to the chapel. Reinforcements from the Ministry should be here shortly._ Harry said. Then he and Ron began assisting the others in caring for the wounded and moving the survivors to the large chapel in the abbey.

* * *

Minister of Magic Albus Dumbledore rubbed his temples as he took a break from reading the reports from Rainbow and the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. It had been an exceeding long and difficult night for the Ministries of England, Ireland, and France. In nearly five-dozen attacks, nearly three hundred people had been killed and nearly twice the number had been injured. Those figures included about two-dozen Aurors.

"How bad was it?" Minerva asked, entering his office. Dumbledore looked up and she was shocked to see the age on his face.

"It was bad, Minerva." He replied. "I'm afraid Voldemort surprised us once again last night. Luckily Rainbow, along our Aurors, was able to respond quickly; nearly all of his attacking forces were either killed or captured. But there was a lot of damage."

"Were any of Rainbow hurt?" she asked. Dumbledore nodded.

"There were several minor and moderate injuries, but nothing serious." Dumbledore replied.

* * *

**Voldemort Launches Counter-Strike; Hundreds Dead in Night of Tears**

_The relative calm that the wizarding world has experienced since the announcement of Minister Dumbledore four weeks ago was shattered last night as forces loyal to Lord Voldemort launched dozens of attacks throughout England, Ireland, and France. Official estimates are still being compiled, but unofficial estimates place the number of dead and injured near a thousand._

_Aurors from all three Ministries, as well as Rainbow, the joint muggle/wizard commando unit, of which the Phoenix Team are members, responded immediately at the first signs of trouble and were able to take out all the raiding forces. Unfortunately, the sheer number of raids, combined with the distances between the attacks, they were not able to intervene fast enough to prevent a tremendous loss of life and property in many cases. Speaking on behalf of Rainbow, Harry Potter had this to say._

_"Our hearts go out to those who lost loved ones in these attacks or who had loved ones injured. Rest assured that we will continue to track down and bring justice to those who have sided with the forces of darkness. Voldemort and his followers will pay."_

_In other news, the attacks of last evening have had a positive effect. In response to the attacks, the Ministers of Magic for Ireland, France and Minister Dumbledore met early this morning and worked out an agreement for joint cooperation in meeting this new threat. Speaking after the meeting, Irish MoM Kevin O'Connor had this said this:_

_"This solidifies what is already the case; our three nations shall work together to remove the stain of Voldemort and his followers from our lands. No one is safe while these monsters are free."_

* * *

"Where's Harry?" Fred asked as he and George sat down at the Marauder's usual table in the base cafeteria. Already seated were Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Neville, as well as Neville's girlfriend Erika.

"Where else?" Ron asked. "Him and John are still holed up in their office." It had been four weeks since the "Night of Tears" as the media had dubbed the attacks. Ever since then, Harry and John had become obsessed with learning why their intelligence network had not provided more warning. Additionally, several of the prisoners taken that night had made vague references to the fact that Voldemort now had a central base of operations outside the country. Harry and John had been spending about twelve hours a day pouring over intelligence reports from not only the Rainbow intelligence network, but also the intelligence services of the British, Irish, and French MoM and the muggle intelligence services of the nations that had originally sponsored Rainbow.

"Can't you get him to take a break?" Hermione asked Ginny.

"No. Believe me, I've tried." Ginny said. "He won't even talk about anything else. He's even forgotten his birthday is in a few days."

"Well, we can't have that." George said.

"Yeah, I guess we're going to have to throw him a party to remind him." Fred said.

"But how are we going to get him to put down the work for a night?" Neville asked. Ginny grinned.

"Let me handle it." She said, and then proceeded to tell the others her plan. The others grinned as they listened.

* * *

Harry set down the latest intelligence report he was reading and rubbed his eyes. He and John were still no closer to solving the mystery as to why their intelligence network had failed to provide warning of the attacks of five weeks ago; nor the mystery of Voldemort's hideout.

_There has to be something we're missing._ Harry thought to himself. John had retired to his quarters a half hour earlier, claiming a migraine. Harry looked at his watch and saw that it was 11pm. He should probably get going as well. Ginny had been rather upset the last few weeks with his work hours and he didn't want to anger her any further.

"You still here?" Ginny asked as she walked into the office. Harry looked up and smiled. She was still in the black jumpsuit uniform that Rainbow had taken to wearing around the base.

"I was just getting ready to leave." He said, rubbing the back of his neck. Ginny walked over and began to massage his neck. Harry groaned slightly.

"That feels really good." He said. After a few minutes, Ginny stopped massaging his neck and step around and sat in his lap, putting her arms around his neck.

"You're really tense tonight." Ginny said. Harry nodded.

"Yeah." He said. "Look, Ginny, I'm sorry for the way I've been acting the last few weeks. Its just really frustrating that we can't seem to make any progress."

"I understand." She said, leaning in and giving him a kiss. "By the way, Happy Birthday." Harry started. How could he have forgotten? It was his sixteenth birthday. More importantly, it meant that Ginny's fifteenth birthday was very close.

"I'd completely forgotten." He admitted.

"That's okay, you've been busy." Ginny said. "But you better not forget mine." Harry grinned. He wasn't planning on forgetting. Sitting in Neville's footlocker was the present he planned on giving her, assuming Molly and Arthur didn't object.

"I wouldn't dream of it." He replied. "So when do I get my present?" Ginny smiled slyly.

"Well, right now." She said, standing up and pulling him out of the chair. "Come with me."

* * *

"Ginny, why are we down here?" Harry asked. Ginny had led him through half the base, finally ending up in level 9, the location of a series of large rooms that Rainbow used for training purposes. Ginny turned and pulled him into a passionate kiss.

"I wanted to make sure we wouldn't be disturbed." She said huskily. Harry suddenly became very nervous. His heart was beating wildly. She couldn't mean what he thought she did. He tried to protest, but Ginny silenced him again. "For once in your life, Potter, shut up and don't look a gift horse in the mouth." Then she opened the door and steered him into the darkness. A second later he heard the door close and he was engulfed in darkness. Then the lights came on.

"SURPRISE!" the crowd, consisting of the members of Rainbow, their families, Dumbledore, and Arthur and Molly shouted. Ginny leaned into his ear.

"Sorry, Harry. I'm afraid you're going to have to wait until after the party for your present." She said. Harry blushed slightly. A moment later he was engulfed as his friends rushed forward to wish him a happy birthday. After they had moved away, Harry spotted John standing off to the side with his wife, grinning. Harry walked over.

"You were in on this." Harry said, pointing a finger at him.

"Absolutely." John said. "I never give up the chance for a good surprise party."

* * *

"Harry, can Molly and I talk to you in private?" Arthur said. They had just walked over to the corner of the room where Harry was standing, watching Ginny and Ron share a brother and sister dance. Harry nodded and led them out to the hall.

"What did you want to talk about?" Harry asked. Molly and Arthur glanced at each other, and then Arthur spoke.

"Well, you see Harry." He began, and then stopped. Harry could sense his nervousness. Arthur took a deep breath, and then continued. "Harry, Molly and I been trying to come up with a birthday present that accurately express how we feel about you. You know you've always been like a son to us."

"Arthur, Molly, you don't have to give me a thing." Harry said. "The fact that you've let me into your family these past few years is more than I could ask for." Molly smiled.

"Be that as it may Harry, we still feel we need to do this. Now, we both know how close you and Ginny have become. We know you love each other very deeply; anybody could see it just by looking at you. So since we can't really call you our son, we'd like to be able to call you our son-in-law." She said. Harry's eyes snapped up. Had he heard right?

"Ron spilled your secret." Arthur said smiling. "And I can't think of anything Molly and I would like more. You have our blessing and our permission. Assuming Ginny accepts of course." Harry launched himself at both Arthur and Molly, hugging them both.

"Thank you." He said.

* * *

"Did you have fun?" Ginny asked. She and Harry were currently in their quarters. The birthday party had broken up a half hour earlier.

"Yeah." He said. "Thanks for dragging me out of the office." He leaned over and kissed her. A moment later they broke apart.

"It's not over yet, Potter." She teased. "I still owe you a present." The next thing Harry knew Ginny had shoved him back onto the bed and was sitting on top of him. She leaned in and kissed him passionately, his lips parting to admit her tongue. The lay locked for several minutes, their tongues and hands exploring one another. The broke apart a moment later and began taking each other's clothes off. Soon they were lying side by side facing each other, their hands exploring one another much the same way they had been for the last several months. After a few minutes, Ginny rolled on top of him, and reached down to grasp him while at the same time whispering, "Happy Birthday." Realizing what she was about to do, it took all of Harry's willpower to roll her off him and he sat up.

"We have to stop, Ginny." He said, breathlessly. She gave him a scolding look.

"Don't you dare play the noble card on me Harry." She said. "I want this. And from the looks of things you want it too. We could be killed doing this job; you know, I know it, everyone knows it. Who knows how much time we have left? I don't want to waste another minute of it because of some stupid sense of chivilary."

"I know Ginny, I feel the same way." Harry said. "But its still not right; I mean, we're not even engaged." He reached over the bed and reached into the pocket of his jumpsuit, which was crumpled on the floor. "Luckily that's something I can rectify right now." He rolled back to facing Ginny, this time the holding the engagement ring he had bought for her several weeks back in his hands. Ginny gasped. "Ginny Weasley, I love you with all my heart. And I don't want to waste another minute without being yours in mind, soul, body and in the eyes of the law. Will you marry me?" Tears formed in Ginny's eyes.

"Yes, of course I will." She said. He slipped the ring on her finger and the two embraced in another kiss. Suddenly Ginny pulled back. "Harry, what about my parents? I'm still underage. We'll need their permission. Oh god, Mom is going to go ballistic." Harry just laughed. "And just what is so funny?"

"Because my dear, they've already given their blessing." Harry replied. Once again Ginny gave a small gasp.

"When did you ask them?" she asked.

"I didn't." Harry said. "They came to me tonight. Ron knew I was planning on asking them for their permission and let it slip." Then he leaned in and kissed her again.

A moment later the subject of her parents was forgotten as the two newly engaged teens completed yet another step in their journey towards being joined in every way possible.


	29. Chapter 28

Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven

Chapter 28

Harry awoke early the next morning, memories of the previous night flooding into his mind, causing him to smile. He looked over at the vision of beauty sleeping next to him and felt absolutely content.

_Why the hell did I wait so long_? He thought to himself. All of his arguments against taking this step, and against asking Ginny to marry him first before the defeat of Voldemort and then before her birthday no longer seemed important. In fact, he felt ashamed that he had acted that way. The more he thought about it, Ginny had signaled several times lately that she wanted to move their relationship further, and he had just ignored her.

Ginny moved beside him, drawing him out of his thoughts. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled.

"Morning." she said, reaching up to kiss him. A moment later she pulled back.

"Morning." He replied, returning the kiss. Ginny snuggled close to him.

"Last night was wonderful." She said.

"Do I take that to mean your not opposed to a repeat performance this morning?" Harry asked with a smirk on his face.

* * *

An hour later, Harry and Ginny walked hand-in-hand into the Mess Hall. Harry glanced around and spotted the rest of the Marauders, as well as Sirius, John, Ding, and Erika sitting at a table. Sirius waved them over.

"About time you two got up." Sirius said, smirking. "From the look on Harry's face, I'd say you had a good birthday." Harry and Ginny grinned, than sat down. Ginny reached with her left hand to grab a pitcher of orange juice. As she did so, the light caught the ring on her finger. Hermione and Erika gasped.

"Ginny! Is that an engagement ring?" Hermione asked. Ginny glanced at Harry, who nodded. She then held her hand out for the rest to see.

"Harry asked me last night." She said, smiling.

"Congratulations." John said, followed by the others.

"Do mom and dad know yet?" Ron asked. Harry shook his head.

"They knew I was planning on asking, seeing as how _somebody_ spilled the beans." Harry said, glaring at Ron. "They pulled me out of the party last night to let me know they were okay with it. But they don't know I asked yet."

"You better tell mom right away." Fred said.

"Yeah, she'll be right mad if you don't tell her soon." George said.

"We'll visit her and dad later and let them know." Ginny said.

"When's the wedding?" Neville asked. Harry glanced at Ginny, and then answered.

"We didn't really discuss it." He said honestly, "We..er…we're too busy celebrating." The group exchanged knowing looks, causing Harry and Ginny to blush slightly. "Besides, even with her parents okay we legally can't get married until after her birthday."

* * *

Hundreds of miles away, a lone figure moved cautiously through the cold, stone corridors of Durmstrang Magical Academy. It had been a long several days, filled with much reflection.

Viktor Krum silently sighed to himself. The beginning of last term had brought much change to the Academy. For one, Headmaster Karkaroff had been replaced, as had most of the teaching staff. The new staff, while competent, was much…darker than the previous staff. This fact became apparent very fast. Durmstrang had always had a reputation for being deeper in the Dark Arts than most other wizarding schools but it had never reached this level.

Another change was his own standing in the school. He has always been one of the favorites among the teachers and students. But that had changed. Since the start of term, he had be subjected to a steadily increasing amount of hatred from the professors and students, particularly for his brief romantic interlude with the muggle born Hermione Granger at Hogwarts last year.

But that was only part of it. Far worse was his seemingly friendly attitude towards Harry Potter during the Tournament. It was odd, he reflected, he had always been brought up to believe the very things that his classmates did about muggle borns. But all of that had crumbled in his time at Hogwarts.

Then several days ago, Viktor had stumbled upon information that he wished wasn't true. The entire staff was Deatheaters. Worse, they had been recruiting many of the students over the last several months. But even that was not the last of it.

There had always been rumors of a vast network of underground chambers on the grounds, but until a mere hour ago, no one had ever been able to find them. Then Viktor had spotted several figures who had not been at the school even the day before go through a secret entrance near the Potions room. He had followed them, and discovered a horrifying fact.

Durmstrang was now the headquarters of Lord Voldemort.

Viktor had immediately retreated back into the school. He knew it was only a matter of time before someone came looking for him; he had no illusions that he could have invaded the Dark Lord's space and not have been noticed. Chances were he would be dead shortly.

_But that doesn't matter._ He thought. _What matters is that I let Harry know what's going on before that happens.  
_

* * *

"Harry, Ginny!" Molly Weasley exclaimed, rushing over to Harry and Ginny and engulfed them in a bone-crushing hug. They had used a portkey to travel to Hogwarts, where Molly and Arthur were currently residing. "I wasn't expecting a visit from you today. Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine, mum." Ginny said smiling. "Where's dad?"

"Ginny! Harry!" the voice of Arthur Weasley sounded from behind them. They turned and greeted him.

"So what do we owe this visit to?" Arthur asked.

"Well, we have some news." Ginny said, holding up her left hand for both of her parents to see. Molly gasped.

"Is that- Are you-" she asked.

"Yes, Molly." Harry replied. "I hope you're okay with it. I know you gave me your permission, but at the time you thought I was going to wait until her birthday. I just couldn't wait any longer."

Molly and Arthur exchanged looks and smiled.

"Harry," Arthur said, coming over to him and extending his hand. "We meant what we said last night. Welcome to the family." He moved away and Molly came over and hugged Harry.

"Thank you Arthur, Molly." Harry replied.

"So have you to decided when?" Arthur asked.

"No." Ginny replied honestly. "I mean, I can't until my birthday, even with you approval."

"Well, as soon as you decide let us know." Molly said. Just then Dumbledore entered the room, his normally dancing eyes subdued.

"Hello, Harry, Ginny." He said. "Congratulations on your engagement." Harry looked puzzled. They hadn't told him yet. Dumbledore smiled slightly. "There is very little that goes on in Hogwarts without me knowing about it. In fact, the last time was when seven former pupils of mine…ah, alas I fear that I must put an end to this reunion."

"What is it Albus?" Harry asked.

"I've just received an owl Harry, with a letter addressed to you." He replied, handing it to him. The envelope was stained with blood.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"The owl that brought it was very badly injured. Whomever sent it and whatever information it contains, it looks like someone didn't want it to get through." Dumbledore replied. Harry immediately opened the envelope, took out the parchment and began to read.

_Dear Harry,_

_I hope that this note reaches you though I am afraid it may not. I have recently discovered information that is critical to the war._

_Durmstrang has become a stronghold of Voldemort. There are vast underground complexes here that I have recently discovered are being used by the staff and the rest of Voldemort's followers. More importantly, I believe the Dark Lord himself is here._

_I have no illusions that I will live to speak with you first hand; I'm afraid they already know that I saw what I wasn't supposed to.  
_

_This letter is a portkey that will take you to the forest near the school, tap it with your wand and say "snitch." I'm sure you'll find a way to get the rest of your people here.  
_

_Good luck Harry and make the bastards pay for everything they've done._

_Viktor_

Harry's face took on a stone appearance.

"What does it say?" Ginny asked. He handed her the letter. Her eyes widened as she read it. Finally she passed it on to Dumbledore.

"We need to get back to base." Harry said after everyone was finished reading.

"What are you planning to do?" Arthur asked.

"I suggest you gather as many Aurors and Unspeakables as you can spare." Harry said to Arthur and Dumbledore. "Once we get back to base, we're going to start planning an assault on Durmstrang. Its time we finish this once and for all."

================

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the delay in updating. Although I originally intended this story to run through 6th and 7th year, I find myself rapidly running out of options for plot points. So it appears that the story will go another four or five chapters at most, ending towards the second or third month of what would have been Harry's 6th year. I may or may not do a sequel; first I want to work on my two other fics.


	30. Chapter 29: The Assault

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Chapter 29: The Assault**

John was sitting in his office reviewing reports when Harry and Ginny came back. One look at their faces and he knew something was wrong.

"What's up?" he asked. Harry handed him the parchment. John read it quickly, his face taking on a grim look. "Where is Durmstrang?"

"No one knows for sure. Like Hogwarts, its unplottable." Ginny replied.

"So that means we'll all have to go by port key. And we won't be able to bring air support." John said, meaning Rainbow's specially modified helicopters. "Damn." Harry and Ginny nodded in understanding. Though none of them had ever been to Durmstrang, if it was anything like Hogwarts, it was a veritable fortress. Add to that the presence of the bulk of Voldemort's forces, and the prospect of successfully assaulting the place without air support became very slim.

"I know." Harry said. "But we can't hold off. Voldemort probably already knows we're coming. If we delay, he'll only improve his defenses. Its time to end this once and for all."

* * *

Harry looked out over the sea of faces gathered in the auditorium. The room had been magically expanded several times and was filled to capacity, unlike at other times. In addition to the 250 members of Rainbow (including the crews of the unit's helicopters, which would be useless on this mission), there were approximately four hundred members of the Order of the Phoenix, nine hundred British, Irish French, Belgian, and Spanish Aurors, two hundred goblins, one hundred Centaurs, and thanks to Hagrid's work, fifty giants. None of these forces were surprise to Harry; they had spent much of the last year cementing support among their likely allies in the magical community.

He glanced at two groups of wizards, one, numbering about four hundred or so, clad in forest camouflage. These were combat mages from the American military, sent by John's friend, President Jack Ryan to assist in the battle. They were slightly better trained than the Aurors since their primary mission was to wage war, not capture enforce the law. He had been slightly surprised; John had never mentioned these reinforcements to him; apparently it had been planned for some time. But even more surprising than the Americans was the large group of about three hundred that were seated immediately behind them, the distinctive crest of Hogwarts sticking out like a sore thumb. Apparently Dumbledore had really accelerated the DADA training since the Marauder's departure from the school. As he gazed at their army, he couldn't help but feel immense power radiating from them.

Strictly speaking, it wasn't enough. All told they had about 2600 troops to through against Durmstrang; they didn't dare try using more Aurors or Unspeakables; there was still a distinct possibility that Voldemort would use their attack as a chance to hit Britain or elsewhere. And given the defenses of Durmstrang, and the fact that he had at least a three to one numerical superiority in manpower, it was likely that none of them would live through this.

The plan, such as it was, was simple. Harry and the Marauders had managed to duplicate the parchment that Viktor had sent, allowing them to have dozens instead of just one, portkeys. Harry, the Marauders, and Rainbow would be the first to transport to the forest outside Durmstrang. Once they gave the clear signal, the rest of the force would portkey there as well. Then the Marauders, joined by the American combat mages would assault the wards surrounding the castle. Once they were down, the whole force would attack en mass, with the Marauders immediately heading for the castle and Voldemort.

"Okay, listen up." Harry's voice boomed throughout the auditorium. All conversation fell silent. "Thank you. You've all know what we're up against. This fight is going to be bloody, and very likely not many of us will be coming back. The enemy outnumbers us and is in command of the high ground.

But that does not matter. All of us here have long known that our chances for surviving this war were slim at best. Despite our enemy's size and power, we have one thing that they will never have; for unlike our enemies, we are not fighting for money, power and glory. We are fighting for our friends, our loved ones, and all those who cannot defend themselves.

Freedom is the most precious and powerful force in the universe, even more powerful than magic. Over and over again, the history of world has shown that tyranny is no match for freedom. Oh, it may gain a temporary upper hand for a while, but it cannot triumph permanently. For wherever man resides, he desires to be free. And that desire will drive him to do incredible things. This is what our enemies do not understand.

And so I say to you, let's show these bastards just what a freedom loving people can do!" Cheers erupted among those gathered, shaking the very foundation of the base. Harry glanced over at his friends, who were looking at him with grim determination. Ginny walked over and pulled him to her.

"I love you Harry Potter." she said. After they had separated, he turned to the rest of the Marauders. Ron held out his hand, palm down. One by one, the others clasp their hands to each others. Finally Harry placed his hands on theirs.

"Let's do this." Harry said.

* * *

_'Anything?' _Harry asked through the mind link. He, along with the Marauders and the rest of Rainbow had portkeyed to the forest several minutes earlier.

_'It looks clear' _George said. Harry turned to John and nodded. John turned and signaled the team leaders. Like a well-rehearsed quidditch team, the Rainbow troops began moving off, forming a tight perimeter along the edge of the forest. Harry pulled his parchment from his pocket and scribbled a quick note.

A moment later there were flashes as more people, using portkeys, appeared in the area. Major Lisa Michaels, the commander of the American combat mages, immediately stepped over to Harry.

"We're all here." She said. Harry nodded. Michaels turned to her troops and motioned them forward.

* * *

Deep inside Durmstrang's dungeons, Lord Voldemort sat on his throne, pleased. In front of him lay the bloodied, now motionless body of Viktor Krum.

Everything was coming together perfectly. He had allowed the fool to send his owl, hoping that Potter and his allies would be foolish enough to attack. Since the battle at the Burrow, he had reconstituted his forces and heavily warded the castle, as well as placing large amounts of defensive firepower on the walls. He had also acquired some very rare texts, which allowed him to boost his magical ability even greater. He was confident that he could now defeat Potter and his friends.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of large explosions rocking the castle. He immediately activates the crystal ball sitting in front of him. When the image appeared, he smiled. His plan was about to bear fruit.

Harry heard a muffled groan and watched as one of the American mages went down, victim of a burst of gunfire from the castle. Almost the minute the Marauders and the mages had begun attacking the wards, they came under a hail of gunfire, curses, hexes, and explosives from the well-entrenched enemy. Several of the American mages were now dead, and many more wounded. But still they stood their ground.

They had been hitting the wards for nearly ten minutes and Harry could sense the power of the wards draining quickly.

"Get ready!" Harry shouted back to the rest of the waiting force. Then he turned his attention back to the wards.

_"I think they're ready to give!"_ Hermione said over the link. A moment later, a large groan was heard through the air, followed by a large crash as the wards fell.

"Move out!" Harry shouted as he and the others charged forward.

* * *

"My lord! The wards have fallen!" a panicked Deatheater shouted hurriedly.

"What?!" Voldemort said, as what little color was left on his pale skin rapidly drained for a moment. Then it returned. "It is no matter, they will not defeat me this time."

* * *

Ding cursed as he dived out of the way of a killing curse, which grazed his side, and then struck the ground. Rolling over he fired a quick burst at the nearest Deatheater, hitting him (or maybe it was a her) in the chest. Glancing around he saw there were no other close threats. Taking a moment he looked around at the scene of carnage.

The battle had been raging for twenty minutes now and the forces of light were making steady progress towards the castle. But they were also taking heavy casualties doing it. The ground surrounding the castle was littered with the bodies of the dead and dying of both sides, along with the smoldering craters left over from the impacts of curses and explosives.

"Where the hell are those heavy weapons?" Sirius said, moving up alongside Ding. He was referring to a cache of mortars, bazookas, and rocket launchers that the second wave was supposed to be bringing with them.

"I'm not sure." Ding said. "But if they don't get here soon…"

* * *

"Slasio!" Harry shouted, catching a Deatheater in the chest and sending him to the ground. The Marauders had managed to fight their way into the castle and down to the lower levels, a trail of dead Deatheaters and mercenaries littering the castle.

_"Are you sure we shouldn't give the guys a hand outside?"_ Neville said through the link. _"We could probably take some heat off them if we head up."_

_"I know."_ Harry replied. _"I don't like leaving the team on their own either. But we need to get Voldemort. If he gets away, it won't matter how many of them we take out. He'll just recruit more followers and we'll be back where we started."_

_"We know Harry." _Hermione said. _"But we still don't have to like it."_ Harry glanced down at the map that Krum had sent him. If they were reading it right, they were nearing the entrance to the secret level that Voldemort and his followers had dug under the castle.

The seven friends moved slowly forward, their eyes scanning for danger. Suddenly, from the end of the corridor, a torrent of curses and gunfire. The Marauders dived behind several statues.

"Looks like Krum's map was accurate." Ron said as he returned fire. His aim rang true, the muffled scream of a Deatheater soon followed by the thud of his body hitting the ground.

"Grenades." Harry ordered. The Marauders each pulled a grenade from their belts and pulled the pins. Counting to six, Harry nodded and they launched the spherical devices. A moment later there was a deafening roar as the grenades exploded. Harry peaked around the statue he was hiding and surveyed the scene. The hallway was a mess of debris and bodies. At least a dozen Deatheaters and mercenaries had been killed by the grenades; at least a dozen more were moaning on the ground, injured.

"Let's move." Harry said. The seven rushed forward, firing their weapons at several of the wounded enemy who tried to mount further resistance.

* * *

"Somebody order back-up?" Captain Martin Mattingly asked as he dove next to Ding and Sirius, and grinned. Sirius looked over to him.

"What took you so long?" he asked. Mattingly was in command of the second wave of troops, the ones carry the assault force's heavy weapons.

"Had to pick up some bagels." Martin replied. Behind him, several teams were busily setting up 81mm mortar launchers. Further down the line, several bazooka teams moved into position. "Where do you want me to concentrate my fire?"

"Target your mortars on those towers." John ordered as he crawled over to their position, indicating to the four massive towers that lined the front of the castle, from which a hellish amount of fire was being poured down onto the attackers. "Concentrate the rest of your weapons on the gate and the fortifications guarding it."

"Roger." Martin said, and then moved back to his men. Less than two minutes later, there was the familiar sound of mortar shells launching from their tubes. The first several shots fell short, either not reaching the enemy lines and exploding on the ground or missing the towers and instead impacting against sections of wall. Martin shouted orders to his men. A moment later another round of projectiles flew through the air.

This time the aim of the mortar crews was true this time, their shells impacting against the towers. Soon more and more shells were making their way towards the enemy's strong points. Meanwhile, the rest of the troops increased their fire on the enemy troops before them, while dozens of bazooka and rocket teams opened up on the enemy fortifications surrounding the castles massive gate.

* * *

"Explosio!" Fred shouted, firing an exploding hex into a group of three Deatheaters. The Marauders had reached the lower level of the castle, and judging by the increased resistance they were meeting, they were coming closer to Voldemort's throne room.

The fighting so far had been brutal. Moving through about a half a dozen rooms so far, the Marauders had been assaulted by almost a hundred Deatheaters and Mercenaries. The majority of these were now dead; the rest, severely wounded. But their defense had been tenacious. All of the Marauders had suffered wounds; although they were mostly minor. Around them they could feel the castle rumbling under the impact of the heavy weapons and spell fire they knew the rest of the assault force was hitting the enemy with.

"I hope the guys are faring okay." Neville said as they moved carefully forward. A moment later they dived in separate directions as a mercenary popped up from behind a large stone, firing his AK-47.

"Flarus!" Ginny shouted, sending a fireball towards the man, charring him to a crisp in a matter of seconds.

"Don't worry about them; they'll make it." Hermione said as she stood up, brushing the dust off her jumpsuit. Ron looked towards the other side of the room.

"Uh, guys. I think this is it." He said. The others turned. At the far side of the room was a large set of double doors. Each was engraved with the Slytherin coat of arms.

"Somebody had got to tell snake-face that his decorating skills suck." George quipped. A moment later the massive doors swung open.

"Welcome Harry Potter." Voldemort's voice hissed throughout the hall.

* * *

"Yes!" Sirius shouted as he watched the fourth of the four massive towers lined along the front of the castle finally crumble under the repeated fire of the heavy weapons of the attack force. Without their vantage points in the tower, the enemy was unable to bring as fearsome amount of fire down on Rainbow and its allies, thus allowing them to move even closer to the castle.

In response to the loss of their vantage points, a large amount of the enemy had actually left the castle and were now engaged in a classic slugfest with the attacking forces of light. Sirius grinned. As prepared as Voldemort's men had been for the attack, and for as sound as their initial tactics were, once their plan had begun to fall apart they had no backup and as such were now engaging in the type of battle that would ultimately favor Rainbow.

Already elements of the attacking force had pushed forward nearly to the castle itself. The ground shook several times as the mortars shifted their fire to the main gate of the castle and the enemy troops outside the castle walls.

"Grenades!" John shouted. Around him, members of Rainbow, including Sirius, began removing their remaining grenades from their web gear. A moment later each had one in their hands, pins pulled, ready to launch. As one, a hundred hand grenades flew through the air towards enemy's forces. A moment later the ground shook as they exploded, sending Deatheaters and mercenaries flying through the air, a cloud of dust and smoke momentarily blocking the view of the enemy lines.

A few seconds later the smoke cleared and John surveyed the damage. The concentrated grenade attack had broken the enemy's forces. Large amounts were now dead or dying and the remaining fortifications were in ruins. He signaled to the others.

"Let's get them!" he said, pushing himself off the ground and charging towards the castle. Behind him the rest of the attacking force gave a shout and charged.

The Deatheaters and mercenaries that were still capable tried to put up a fight, but the balance had now swung completely to the attackers. Most were killed in rapid bursts of magic and automatic weapons fire; some of the smarter ones dropped their wands and weapons and surrendered as the rushing tide of the attacker drew near them.

Meanwhile, Rainbow's bazooka and mortar teams continued to pound the gate, despite the closeness of their own troops to the enemy. Everyone knew that defeating the enemy for good would come down to getting into the castle. They also knew that somewhere inside, seven of their number were battling the most evil wizard in history; and the rest of Rainbow wanted to get a piece of the action.

After a few more moments of continued pounding, the large main gate finally exploded into a hail of broken lumber. Dozens of the attacking force rushed forward into the castle, the rest approaching rapidly behind them.

Sirius, John and Ding were about to head towards the castle when suddenly the ground began to shake violently, knocking them off their feet. Then a large bright white light burst from the castle. All around, members of Rainbow and their allies tried to shield their eyes.

Sirius began to get a very bad feeling. He didn't know why but something spurned him to action.

"Fall back!" he shouted. It took a moment, but slowly the force began to move away from the castle. They were about halfway between the castle and the forest when suddenly the castle exploded, sending debris into the air. The shockwave of the blast picked Sirius up and threw him several feet into the air. He impacted the ground and a moment later everything went dark.


	31. Chapter 30: The Final Confrontation

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Chapter 31: The Final Confrontation**

Harry glanced to the others, each one of them answering him with look of determination. Harry squared his shoulders back and walked through the massive door. Behind him followed Ginny, Hermione, Ron, Neville, Fred and George. As they past through the door the entered a large chamber, whose decor immediately made Harry and Ginny shiver. It looked eerily similar to the Chamber of Secrets from which Harry had rescued Ginny in his second year. At the far end of the room stood a figure wearing pitch-black cloak, his face covered by the shadow of its hood. Only the eyes could be seen and they were blood red.

"Voldemort." Harry stated, as he drew to within twenty feet of his nemesis. The others took position on either side of Harry, with Ginny being on his immediate right.

"Harry Potter." Voldemort sneered, his eyes flicking to Harry's companions. "And I see you've brought the rest of your troublesome friends. Excellent. Now I can eliminate all of Dumbledore's supposed saviors in one fell swoop."

"Getting a little cocky, aren't you?" Ron said.

"Yeah, after all, the last time we met, Harry knocked you on your ass, Tom." Ginny added. Voldemort's eyes flared at the mention of his former name.

"Do not call me that child." he sneered. "And as for the rest, I think you'll find that Lord Voldemort is more than a match for you." For a moment they stood, glaring at each other. Then in a flash, all hell broke loose.

"Avada Kadavera!" Voldemort shouted, the green killing curse speeding towards Harry and his friends. At the same time the Marauders launched a barrage of their own spells, and a moment later diving out of the way of the killing curse.

"Flarus!" Harry shouted as he stood up.

"Protego!" Voldemort shouted. Harry's spell (as well as the other's) impacted against the shield and disappated.

_Damn he's tougher than I thought he'd be._ Fred said through link as he fired a stunner at the Dark Lord, which was easily deflected.

_Tell me about it. _Harry said over the link as he fired a spell of his own, and then had to duck a slashing spell. _Its almost like he's increased his magic again._

_Yeah, well let's see how he handles bullets._ Neville replied, swinging his MP-5 up and depressing the trigger. Voldemort cursed as he tried to avoid the bullets, but three impacted his leg and he let out a strangled cry. Immediately he fired a exploding hex at Neville, which impact close to him and Neville was thrown back.

_Cover me. I'm going to Neville._ Ginny called through the link. The others let loose with a barrage of curses and bullets. Most of them missed but a few grazed the Dark Lord.

When Ginny reached Neville he had managed to pull himself behind a pillar and was holding his side. Ginny knelt down and examined the wound. A piece of granite from where the exploding curse had struck the floor was imbedded in his side.

"I can fix this, but its going to hurt." She said. Neville grinned.

"Well, you know what they say; no pain, no gain." He replied. Ginny reached over and extracted the granite, Neville wincing as she did so. A moment later she waved her had, muttering a spell that immediately sealed the wound and stopped the bleeding.

"I've stopped the bleeding and closed it up, but it's going to be a while before it's fully healed." She replied, placing a bandage on it. Neville nodded and stood up.

"Let's get back into the fight." He said.

* * *

Harry cursed as he dove behind a pillar, panting heavily. The Marauders had been fighting Voldemort for what seemed like hours. Neither side had yet gotten an advantage. They had managed to do some damage to him but he had also inflicted wounds on them. Harry's left arm ached, the result of a slashing curse that had grazed him there. In addition to the wound on his side Neville had also twisted his ankle dodging a curse. Hermione's left leg was injured, Ron had taken a blow to the head from exploding shrapnel, and stunners had injured both Fred and George.

"While this has been a nice exercise," Voldemort suddenly announced, "It is time for it to come to an end." He made a strange motion with his wand and muttered a strange incantation. The lights dimmed slightly and there were dozens of loud bangs, followed by an equal amount of clouds of thick, red smoke. The Marauders began coughing.

_What the hell is going on?_ Neville asked. A moment later, the smoke cleared providing them with their answer. Harry's eyes widened. Standing in front of the Dark Lord were two-dozen creatures the likes of which he had never seen. Each one was bipedal, standing at about seven feet. Their bodies were red, covered with what looked like dragon scales. Ram's horns patruded from their heads, and each bore large sharpened teeth. Their hands and feet alike were equipped with six-inch razor sharp claws.

_Hermione, what are those things?_ He asked through the link.

_They're demons, Harry. They're incredible resistant to attack and very deadly. _She answered as the Marauders fired on the creatures. None of their fire seemed to have much effect on them. Behind the demons, Voldemort laughed. _This is bad Harry. I think we're going to need to use the spell._

Harry's eyes widened slightly. He knew the spell that she was referring to. Given the potential side effects they must be in a really bad situation for he to suggest using it.

_BEGIN FLASHBACK _

"_I think I may have found something." Hermione said as she walked up to the rest of the Marauders. They were currently sitting in the cafeteria at Rainbow headquarters._

_After the near disaster at the Burrow, Harry had decided that they would need to start looking for more powerful spells that could be used against Voldemort and his forces. Hermione, as usual, had taken to the task with excitement._

_They had been at it for several weeks but so far had found nothing._

"_What do you have?" Harry asked. Hermione set a rather ancient tome on the table and sat down. Opening the book she pointed to a page._

"_It's called the Eternal Justice spell." She said. "It calls on some incredible ancient magic. Basically is designed to envelope anything and within two hundred yards and completely destroy them." The others showed looks of interest. "There are some catches however."_

"_Such as?" Ginny asked, slightly worried by the look that had just made its way to Hermione's face._

"_Well, the stronger the enemy, the more raw magical strength is needed to cast the spell. In the case of Voldemort, I don't think any one of use could do it. We'd have to cast it together, like we've done with some of the others." She said._

"_That doesn't sound so bad." Ron said. Next to him Neville, Fred and George nodded in agreement._

"_Unfortunately, even with seven of us combining our energies, it is still going to be quite a drain." Hermione said solemnly. "In fact, I'm not sure we'd have enough magical strength left to defend ourselves."_

"_You mean-" Neville started. Hermione nodded._

"_Yes. I can't guarantee that we would survive the effects of the spell."_

_END FLASHBACK _

The Marauders had agreed that they would learn to do the spell, but that they wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary. Staring at the battle in front of him, Harry knew that the time had come. Despite their best efforts, they were not doing much damage to the demons.

_Everyone form on me._ He said through the link. Quickly the other Marauders were at his side, looks of determination on their faces. He looked at them and they nodded. They clasped their hands together and stood up from behind the fallen pillar where they had taken cover.

Voldemort watch as his foes stood up with glee.

_Fools._ He thought. He had no doubt they were going to try one of their combined spells, much like they had at the Burrow. But he was not worried. His demons would be more than a match for them.

He watched in amusement as the seven children raised their hands. Amusement turned to horror a moment later, however, when he heard the curse they uttered.

"Eternus Iustitia!" they shouted.

Voldemort watched in horror as a blinding gold light, signifying the ancient spell that he had always feared erupted from their hands and sped towards his demons. It impacted the demons, which screamed in agony, before they exploded.

Time seemed to stand still as the wave of light came towards him. Panicking, he threw up his most powerful shield, feeding all of his energy into it. A moment later the light collided with his shield, enveloping the entire chamber in a horrendous explosion.


	32. Epilogue

**Harry Potter and the Magnificent Seven**

**Epilogue**

Ding Chavez watched the celebration with sadness. He was standing in front of the Ministry of Magic, along with the rest of the survivors from the final assault on Voldemort and his forces. They had gathered here to receive medals for their part in the final defeat of Voldemort and his allies. As far as Ding knew, his Rainbow troopers were the only muggles to ever be extended that honor.

The entire wizarding world was in celebration, even now, three weeks after the battle. Thousands of people were in the streets cheering. Fireworks and spells shot through the air. Across the country thousands more were also celebrating. For the most terrible Dark Lord in history was dead.

For Ding and the rest of Rainbow, as well as many of the families gathered next to them, the euphoria of their victory was tempered by sadness and loss. For victory had come at a terrible price. Nearly 60 of the assault force had either be killed or badly injured. But by far the greatest sense of loss came from eight names. Ding turned and looked at the large marble monument that had been installed next to the building, listing the names of the dead. His eyes fell on the names near the top.

_John Clark_

_Harry Potter_

_Ginny Potter_

_Ron Weasley_

_Hermione Weasley_

_Neville Longbottom_

_Fred Weasley_

_George Weasley_

Tears welled up in his eyes. He, along with Sirius, had been among the first to enter the ruins of Voldemort's throne room and had discovered the bodies. The Dark Lord was slumped against the remains of a wall, his body completely broken, a look of fear and awe on his dead face. They found the Marauders some fifty feet away, buried under rubble. Despite the damage to their bodies, they remained locked hand in hand as they had when they cast the final spell.

At first no one was sure what had happened, other than the obvious. But then Sirius had discovered a hastily written letter in the pocket of Harry's uniform. It had been written hours before they had left for the final assault. It detailed the spell that the teens had found, and its drawbacks, and their determination to use it if necessary.

Later, Dumbledore entered the chamber and using some powerful magic was able to capture the echoes of the battle, which were then played for all concerned.

Ding's body swelled with pride as he remembered the valor, courage and determination they had shown, even at the end when it became apparent that they would not survive the spell. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Sirius.

"You know its funny," Sirius said. "I always thought I'd be the one to go out in a blaze of glory against Voldemort or his people. I never thought I would survive and Harry wouldn't."

Ding nodded and smiled.

"Same here. I never thought that John would die; he spent his entire career making miraculous escapes." He replied. "Its hard to believe their gone."

"The ones we love are never truly gone." Dumbledore said, making his presence known. "And they would not want us to dwell too much on their passing. They died so that others could live."

"We have to make sure nothing like this is ever necessary again." Sirius said. His companions nodded in solemn agreement.


End file.
